Hard to believe that a month has passed since the semester began here at the University of Arizona.  We are already diving into midterms and the build is fast approaching.  Over the course of the past month the team has been busy getting a firm grip on academics and working on all the computer models of the 2008 vehicles.  The UA Baja 2008 designs are unique and with specialties in different areas we will be able to tackle any task at hand.  

So what exactly are we doing this year?  Good question… Without giving away any uber-secret details we will share the following information.  

Two vehicles are being built, that much has already been disclosed.  The first vehicle to begin construction will be the beast.  With a focus on navigating the toughest of terrains, the first vehicle will be built to take any kind of beating that can be thrown at it.  Suspension will allow for outstanding ground clearance without compromising center of gravity. Final drive ratios will be set through a spiffy gearbox that will allow rock-crawling and high-speed endurance style driving.  Ultimately, the first vehicle will be the car that anyone can drive over any terrain safely without having to worry about hitting rocks, bottoming out, or breaking parts.

The second vehicle will begin construction once the first vehicles roll-cage is near completion.  The second vehicle will be built for acceleration, speed, and maneuverability.  The emphasis will be on weight reduction, compact frame, simple components, and ease of driving.  The second vehicle will not have the rock-crawl emphasis of the first vehicle, but it will still be able to withstand a beating if the driver happens to end up in a ditch, or on top of some boulders.  The ground clearance will not be as generous as the first vehicle; the suspension will incorporate features suitable for tight handling and acceleration, rather than massive articulation.  

Last weekend Southwest Steel & Supply joined our team as a metal supplier, thanks to their generosity we can begin building our vehicles!  First on our list of things to do is cut, bend, notch, and create a table-top jig for the 2008 frames.  Once the frame members are all cut, notched, and bent to their respective dimensions we will tack everything up.  Finally, once everything is checked for accuracy and precision, we will weld ‘er up.  Once the timeline gets finalized we will throw that up on the website so you all can follow our progress with some frame of reference.  

Dynamic simulation continues to see progress, once midterms stop looming overhead we will finish analysis on all that jazz.  The spiffy thing about the dynamic simulation of Autodesk Inventor is the recorded video of your invention in action.  Once the cars are “driving” in the simulator we will publish some video of our simulated results.  Yes, that means we will jump the car, roll it, crash it, skid it, slide it, and in other words do everything bad we can think of to try to break it.  It will be awesome, but before all that can happen we have to make sure that academics remain priority.  

Maybe some new pictures will show up on the website this week?  Hint...

Until next time, enjoy the weekend!

Copyright 2008 UA Baja Racing :: University of Arizona :: Tucson, AZ 85719