About FSAE

 Formula SAE is a worldwide engineering competition sponsored by the Society of Automotive Engineers(SAE). Each May SAE student members from almost 140 universities compete with an open-wheel style race car that they have designed and built. Competition points are awarded in the categories of presentation, design, cost, acceleration, skid-pad, autocross, endurance, and fuel economy. Competition rules require that each vehicle conform to frame safety standards, that the engine be no larger than 610cc, and that the engine use an airflow restrictor. Student's are challenged with frame design, engine tuning, suspension setup, marketing, and many other aspects. For the competition it is assumed that a manufacturing firm has requested a prototype car for evaluation as production item. The intended sales market is the nonprofessional weekend autocross racer. Thus, this competition serves as a great experience for students!

Team Advisor

Robert L. Woods, Ph.D.
Professor

Education
Ph.D. Oklahoma State University, 1971
M.S. Oklahoma State University, 1970
B.S. Southern Methodist University 1967

Areas of Expertise
Dynamic Systems, Modeling and Simulation, Control Systems, Fluid Power Control, Fluidics, Microprocessor and digital controls, Logic Systems, Automotive engineering.

Background
Dr.Woods has three years of research experience with the U. S. government in Washington, D.C. in the area of fluidics. He has been teaching and conducting research at the university for 29 years. He has had considerable experience as a consultant for industry. He has been advising students in Mini Baja, Formula SAE, Hybrid Electric Vehicle, and Compressed Natural Gas Vehicle competitions since 1978.

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Outreach

UTA FSAE vehicles are often displayed at community and university events to promote studies in engineering and to inform the general public of our organization. To the left is a picture of a visit to a fifth grade class. Bottom left is a picture of our 1996 Championship car being demonstrated to racing legend Mario Andretti. This picture was taken at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History at the premier of the IMAX film "Super Speedway". Althought the 97 team was at competition in Detroit during this time, former team member Keith Sauer was on hand to display F96.The middle lower photo is also Car 94 which was diplayed at the Motorsports Hall of Fame Museum in Michigan for 2 years. The photo on the lower right is from the recent College of Engineering fair held at UTA. Each year we showcased our vehicles at several area high schools, the State Fair Booth, and the Arlington Fourth of July Parade.

Membership

UTA has participated in the FSAE competition for 20 years, carrying an impressive record of 8 FSAE championships, 3 second place finishes, and 4 third place finishes in the USA, plus victories in England and Australia. This unmatched consistency makes us the world's most successful team in FSAE history! Creative innovations for which UTA is known include the successful use of a butterfly clutch and shifter, the effective use of mountain bike shocks, an original four-into-one intake manifold, carbon fiber wheels, and most recently four-element carbon fiber wings! Our fleet consists of fifteen Formula SAE cars and two Mini Baja cars most of which are in race condition. For more specific information on each of our Formula SAE vehicles visit our History page. We invite you to join our team and share in our excitement and success.

Team Meetings

UTA Formula SAE meets in Woolf Hall, room number 102 every Tuesday at 7:00 PM, and on Saturdays at 10AM. UTA Formula SAE is open to all majors. If you are interested please feel free to stop by during our meeting times. Members are often at the office during the day as well, so feel free to stop by then too.

Get Started!

You can get a jump on things by looking at the Official FSAE Site and looking over the 2005 Formula SAE Rules and reading the FSAE Competition History. Download the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the rules and history.

Team History

      UTA FSAE racing started back in 1978 under the direction of Dr. Robert Woods when several students asked to participate in the annual SAE competition. UT Arlington now boasts an internationally celebrated team with an SAE-record eight first-place wins, four second places and four thirds in U.S. competitions, plus victories in England, Australia and Japan. Dr. Woods realized how famous the team was when a Japanese professor visited the campus recently. “You are a god in Japan,” the professor told Woods. “Everyone is very fearful of your car.”

      During UT Arlington’s first competition in 1978 in Phoenix, a broken chain stopped the car during a four-hour endurance race. The driver told Woods he did not have a link to fix it. Another team overheard the problem and volunteered to hand over its last link. “I saw then that it wasn’t a competition of team versus team, it was car against the track, and the camaraderie among the teams really hooked me,” Woods said.

      As the program progressed, Woods realized that it was great training for students-training unavailable in the classroom, the kind necessary for success in the real world. Each year the process starts with a new car design, rendered on computer in 3D. In late summer, stress and aerodynamic analyses determine which components to use. Hours are spent exploring innovative developments concerning wheels, transmission shifters, suspensions and drivetrains. By early fall, research focuses more on actually drawing and analyzing a design, with assembly in late fall or early spring. The final stage features hands-on test driving.

      Team members search salvage yards for the car’s engine, which often comes from a Honda F4i motorcycle. Retooled, it delivers 75-80 horsepower, but that’s not the only factor influencing speed. The car’s weight of 700 pounds, driver included, along with the motorcycle engine and aerodynamic design, provide the right components to win races. The project involves about 5,000 work hours, worth nearly $250,000 in the automotive industry, Woods said.

      At least 15 students a year come to the College of Engineering because of the Formula SAE team, Woods estimates. Most go on to an engineering career, but few enter auto racing. He says success in that industry requires involvement from early childhood, and most team members’ first experience with racecars happens at UT Arlington.

      Woods attributes the program’s strength to the students’ maturity, excellent support at all levels of the University, continuous in-house driver training and keeping each vehicle for further research, which most universities don’t do.

      The all-volunteer team includes 15-20 undergraduate and graduate students, but it trains only six to eight drivers a year. One of the best drivers, alumnus Erick Kohler, began with the team in 1998 and served as chief engineer for two years and chief driver from 2000-2005. He earned his bachelor’s degree in 2003 and continued in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department and on the team as a graduate student