Going the distance: LSBU engineers set to impress with ultra fuel-efficient marathon car
A team of London South Bank University engineering students are designing a super-efficient car to race alongside others at the Shell Eco-Marathon 2016Students in London South Bank University (LSBU)’s School of Engineering are hard at work to design an eco-friendly car that can run as far as possible on just a single litre of fuel.
After a year of preparation, a team of some of LSBU’s brightest engineers will have just a few days to battle it out in urban circuits, driving self-built cars for supreme energy efficiency at the Shell Eco-Marathon 2016.
The Shell Eco-Marathon competition dates back to 1939 when Shell Oil Company employees in the USA made a friendly wager over who could travel furthest on the same amount of fuel. Since then it has expanded to include competitions on three continents featuring different energy classes. LSBU will be competing with teams from many different countries in the European leg of the competition that sees the green-wheeled cars take to the streets of London, between 30 June – 3 July.
It is the first time that LSBU has entered the competition, but the students are hopeful to leave a lasting legacy for future participants:
“It is very exciting that we are the pioneers for LSBU and hopefully we can leave a fantastic, interesting project for future students. You know that when you mix education with competition it is more than just winning, there is so much you can get from the innovation and exploring and examining new ideas.”
— Shell Eco Marathon Team 2016
Silvio Lavandeira, a Lecturer in the School of Engineering, commented: “LSBU’s involvement with the Shell Eco Marathon Student Competition is a great opportunity for students to gain real-world experience as part of a highly-regarded, fun and unique project. With employers seeking graduates with good team-working, budgeting, time-management and presentation skills, in addition to strong technical abilities, this project is perfect to put students through their paces and help them to transition into the world of work. I’m really looking forward to seeing the team’s car develop over the next months and wish them the best of luck with the competition in the summer!"
Find out more about studying Vehicle Engineering at LSBU.