SAE Supermileage competition ended today and we had obtained the second place. The team is disappointed, but we would like to congratulate the University of Sherbrooke’s team, Infinity, for their victory. In summary, because the car came back from Germany only one day before leaving, problems that had occurred during the Shell Eco-Marathon Europe were still present and we had to address several ones related to the engine. This took much of the first day, which meant that we have passed the inspections on the second day. The first night was used to refine the vehicle so that it would be ready for the second and final day of competition. Rain and cold weather were unfortunately part of the beginning of the next day, limiting the time for testing on the track. However, we enjoyed a thinning to record a first result, rather disappointing, of 1579 mpg. Temperature, very cold, really did not help, but this result suggested the presence of unwanted losses in the vehicle. After several adjustments, we were confident for the second test, but the rain took over the game, this time with thunder, ensuring that all teams had to wait an hour before the track reopened. Finally, when the weather was good enough, we had about 1h30 to save the more testing possible. The second test was the most difficult, because of the fog on the windows; making driving extremely difficult (The pilot used her feet to wipe the fog so she could see!). The test result: about 1610 mpg, we were still very disappointed. Again, the cold weather really did not help, but the vehicle should have done better. Then, there was time for only one last test. Some lubrication and changes in the ECU and we were on the track again. This time, the changes were good and the vehicle was operating at the height of his abilities. After six laps without fail, we were very confident that our results would significantly improve. To our astonishment we found ourselves with a final result of only 467 mpg! We were stunned, only to find a major leak in the fuel supply system. We are not sure of the point at which this problem has manifested itself, but it could explain the results of the day if it was present from the beginning and it has gotten worse after. In short, lack of time, we could not do further testing, which ended the day on a disappointing note.
After a year full of new experiences, we cannot wait to use the new vehicle, which unfortunately could not be ready for the SAE Supermileage. We had an extremely busy year, for the design and manufacture of a new monocoque carbon fiber, a new steering system, new carbon wheels, a new electronic system in addition to participate in three competitions in 2011. Our performance this year might certainly not always lived up to our expectations but our efforts this year will definitely be rewarded in the years to come. We also take the time to thank all our partners without whom this year our many projects would not have been possible.

We just arrived in Marshall, Michigan, to participate to our last competition for this year, the SAE Supermileage. The trip was long but we are ready to set the vehicle in order to pass the technical inspections at the opening of the site, tomorrow morning. This will take a lot of efforts but we will be ready. We will also keep the website up-to-date throughout the event and invite you to follow us during the next 3 days for news of our performances!

The second day started with a very cold weather and strong winds. Hence, the team decided to continue to work on the car, waiting for a more clement weather to attempt a run. In the afternoon, we decided to go for a run, despite of the wind still present. It went really smooth and we were eager for a good performance. However, the result was less than the first run with 27 ml consumed for a result of 880 km/l. This deceiving result was showing a problem with the engine that required too much time to accelerate. After a few modifications in the ECU, we decided to attempt a last run before the closure of the track. Several teams thought the same way, resulting in a very crowded attempt where our driver had to deal with sometimes as many as 15 vehicles in her field of vision, making her job very difficult, particularly in the chicanes. Since we didn’t have time to change much on the engine, the result was pretty much the same as the first one of the day with 29 ml consumed for 858 km/l.

Disappointed about the results of the day, the team spent the rest of the day, as well as most of the night to figure out what was wrong with the engine. We finally noticed a mechanical problem making the reading of sensors on the cam shaft and the crank shaft incorrect. After reparation, the engine seemed to have regained its real performances.
A short night of sleep and we were back on the competition site, in the line for the opening of the track. Many teams had the same idea of waking up early in order to be the firsts. Moreover, the organizers of the competition had decided, surprisingly, to make everybody pass the braking test again, following an incident the day before. This addition was making the process really long. We had until 1 p.m to register 1 or 2 runs. However, when it was our turn to pass the braking test, the judge decided that our braking was insufficient, despite of the fact that the vehicle was holding still on the inclined slope. Some air bubbles must have leaked in the line during the last 2 days, making it less efficient. We knew what we had to do to overcome this problem, which was done really fast, but by that time, the engine was starting to fail again. The reparations of the previous night were not perfect and we needed tools that were not at our disposition on the competition site. We didn’t have time to repair it like we had done the night before, and hence were not able to attempt any more run before the closing of the track. The team was really disappointed of not being able to see the real potential of the vehicle on the EuroSpeedway in Lausitz.

We are still happy of the opportunity that we had to meet the teams in Europe (A particular thank you to Remmi team, from Finland, GAMF team, from Hungary, and Microjoule team from France for their support and their help). Moreover, we were glad to be ranked among the top 15 teams in the competition. On that subject, the team would like to congratulate warmly every teams present at the Shell Eco-Marathon Europe for their performances as well as their realisations. Finally, we would like to thank the company Shell and the organizers of the Shell Eco-Marathon event for giving us the opportunity to participate at the European version of the competition. We had a great time in Lausitz and the organisation was flawless. There is now 2 weeks left before the last competition of the year, the SAE Supermileage, held the 9th and 10th of June in Michigan, USA.