Do lighter racecars go faster?  Does mass even matter?  Should a mass target be a key design goal?  Low mass is often taken to be a virtue in FSAE/FS racecars, and often chosen as a design strategy for improvement in performance.  But does low mass really pay off? 

• Increase point spread in efficiency event

• Use linear scoring formula.

• Reduce EV energy limit to 33% of IC

Many of the common issues with FSAE halfshafts stem from these problems:

• Extreme misalignment between differential and wheel hub

• Tripod housing depth too shallow or too deep on either or both ends

• Contaminants in grease
  

• Travel, Backlash, Deflection

• Bearing Stiffness, Contact Area, Degrees Of Freedom

• Link Stiffness, Strength, Weight

• Energy consumption * time

• (Throttle history, rpm history) * (BSFC -or- cumulative EV efficiency maps)

• Add up fuel injector duration

They made a whole host of small changes that were almost imperceptible to the eye but aerodynamically significant. They also gave the car a nose-down rake by lowering the front suspension and raising the rear, both ever-so-slightly. All of the changes made the car significantly safer to drive at high speed. But the Ford Indigo was never going to be driven at high speeds as a show concept car – right?

To manage priorities, ask four questions about every design decision, in this order: 1. Is it legal or illegal? 2. How does the change affect reliability or repeatability? 3. How does the change affect overall vehicle performance over a lap? 4. What are the drivability effects?

There was one closely held secret design condition. It was secret because management would not want us to ‘overdesign’ the V12. The truth is, with clever engineering, planning for significant power increases adds very little weight and cost if you know what you are doing and if it is done up front.

The restrictor limits the amount of air an engine can use. The intake plenum smooths out the intake pulses, and makes it possible for other engines to compete with 4-cylinders. Asides on turbocharging.

The approach to understand what makes an engine run well is to look at the opening and closing of each valve. But whatever you want the valves to do, they’re actually doing something else, because you always have: Deflection, Inertia, and Vibration.

Stopwatches, garage beams, thermometers, cameras, chalk, zip ties, yarn, and smartphones.

Crash safety considerations beyond the frame and impact attenuator.

Steps to reduce the chances of valve-piston contact or crank bearing failure. The importance of cooling and RPM limits.

This is a logic path for understanding the performance of your car in straight line acceleration. Understand the impact of gearing and power and torque curves.

Definitions of limited slip differential types and performance, focusing on yaw moments due to combined cornering and acceleration or braking.