2005 Formula SAE Competition Celebrates 25th Year

Warrendale, PA, May 14, 2005 - As the Society of Automotive Engineers celebrates its 100th anniversary, the Formula SAE competition marks a significant milestone as well - its Silver Anniversary.

Formula SAE held its first competition in 1981 and is one of the featured events in the Collegiate Design Series. In Formula SAE, student members conceive, design, fabricate and compete with small formula-style race cars; points are awarded for static events (presentation, design, cost analysis) and dynamic events (acceleration, skid-pad, autocross, fuel economy, endurance). Events are held currently in Australia, Brazil, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The U.S. leg in the 2005 Formula SAE Series is set May 18-22, 2005, at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Mich. FSAE is not only the largest student engineering design competition, but also is the world's largest single-class motorsports event. This year 140 teams are registered (the maximum allowed), with entry slots selling out in just 73 minutes.

This year's registered teams hail from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Finland, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Venezuela and the United States. U.S. entries represent 37 states and Puerto Rico. In all, almost 300 universities worldwide have Formula SAE teams.

Cornell University, the defending champion, is an eight-time winner of the event. Past competition winners include the University of Wollongong (New South Wales, Australia), Texas A&M University, The University of Akron, The University of Texas at Arlington, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, Virginia Polytechnic Institute, University of Maryland, University of Houston, The University of Texas in Austin and Stevens Institute of New Jersey.