Dartmouth Formula Racing (DFR) was founded in the academic year of 1995-1996. It is an entirely student-run organization at the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College. The team ranges anywhere from 10-30 dedicated students working to build a racecar which competes in the Formula SAE® or Formula Hybrid series. Throughout DFR’s history, students have designed, built, tested, and raced formula style cars in Michigan, California, New Hampshire, and even at the famous Silverstone Formula 1 circuit in England. Until recently the team focused on competing in Formula SAE events with gasoline- powered cars. Throughout the history of the program DFR has experienced lots of success in these events, which attract teams from around the world. In 2006, DFR finished 7th at Formula Student England, the team’s highest finish at any FSAE event in its fifteen year history. DFR also placed in the top ten in 2001, 2004, 2005, and 2007.
In 2003, Thayer Engineering students began researching hybrid racecars with the goal of integrating the exceptional torque and efficiency of an electric motor to improve racing performance. The first student formula-hybrid racecar was born! DFR brought the car to the annual Michigan FSAE event; however, it was not allowed to compete due to the judges’ inability to determine the safety of the vehicle. The very next year hybrid vehicles were formally disallowed from entering FSAE competitions. It was the FSAE ban on hybrid technology that fueled the creation of the Formula-Hybrid competition sponsored by SAE, IEEE, and our very own Thayer School of Engineering. The first event was held in May 2007, and it has not stopped growing ever since. Six teams showed up for the inaugural event, and in May 2011, thirty-four teams from around the world met for the fifth annual International Formula Hybrid Competition.
Until 2009, DFR built a new FSAE car as well as working on the Hybrid entries. In 2009 the team decided to consolidate its resources to build an entirely new hybrid racecar, which looked and handled like a typical lightweight FSAE car. This effort led to a hybrid racecar, which was 300 lbs lighter than the 2008 hybrid entry. In 2010, DFR decided to continue focusing exclusively on hybrid cars. The 2010 entry, Penny, marked the first year that DFR developed a parallel hybrid, a configuration in which both the internal combustion engine and the electric motor drive the rear wheels. In past years, DFR had only developed series hybrid vehicles, where only electric motors powered the wheels. The 2011 entry showed great success at the annual Formula Hybrid competition this past May by finishing 2nd in design and winning the Chrysler Best Hybrid System Engineering Award. It was in fact DFR’s most successful hybrid racecar finishing 5th overall at the annual competition despite not completing the endurance event.
After two years of great improvement and development, DFR is very excited for the upcoming season. This year the team will keep the same chassis to focus its attention on driving and tuning the car, which has been limited in the past. It is DFR’s strong belief that with an additional year of experience and further tuning and testing, the current car has the potential to win Formula Hybrid 2012. It is an exciting time in the Formula-Hybrid world as teams are gaining knowledge and experience in implementing different concepts to improve performance of these vehicles. DFR has consistently been pushing the envelope as well as designing elegant hybrid systems in each of their vehicles, and this year will be no exception. DFR has provided students with a professional environment while still experiencing the academic aspects of the automotive engineering field. With the shift in automotive engineering to hybrid drivetrains and more efficient vehicles, the Formula-Hybrid Competition and DFR’s Formula Hybrid Team are focusing on these new automotive concepts to give Thayer students the edge in markets which explore this innovative technology.