About Baja SAE®
Baja SAE® consists of competitions that simulate real-world engineering design projects and their related challenges. Engineering students are tasked to design and build an off-road vehicle that will survive the severe punishment of rough terrain. Each team’s goal is to design and build a single-seat, all-terrain, sporting vehicle whose structure contains the driver. The vehicle is to be a prototype for a reliable, maintainable, ergonomic, and economic production vehicle which serves a recreational user market.
The objective of the competition is to provide SAE student members with a challenging project that involves the design, planning and manufacturing tasks found when introducing a new product to the consumer industrial market. Teams compete against one another to have their design accepted for manufacture by a fictitious firm. Students must function as a team to not only design, build, test, promote, and race a vehicle within the limits of the rules, but also to generate financial support for their project and manage their educational priorities.
All vehicles are powered by a 14hp Kohler Command Pro CH440 engine with a restrictor plate that brings the engine down to 10hp. Kohler and SAE International entered an agreement, Kohler will provide at discount engines to participating teams for the 2023 – 2026 competition seasons. Use of the same engine by all teams creates a more challenging engineering design test.
Static Events
Business Presentation (70 points)
The objective of the Business Presentation is to evaluate the team’s ability to develop and deliver a comprehensive business plan that will convince the executives of a corporation that the team’s car design and company best meets the demands of the amateur, weekend competition market. Broken up into three parts, the Business Presentation a
Cost Report (100 points)
Students create a detailed report of all costs associated with materials, processes, and assembly of the car. Points are awarded based on total car cost and report quality.
Design Presentation (150 points)
During this event students must present their knowledge of the car and engineering concepts to a panel of judges. At most events there are multiple rounds of design, each with increasingly difficult questions and longer sessions. The first round involves all teams, and focuses on fundamental knowledge. Only the best Teams reach the Design Finals.
Dynamics (280 Points)
For all events teams have two attempts. The best of the two are used for competition results.
Dynamic Events
Acceleration (70 Points)
The acceleration event evaluates teams straight line acceleration over a distance of 100 or 150 feet.
Maneuverability (70 Points)
Maneuverability tests a vehicles ability to move around tight corners and over simple obstacles.
Hill Climb (70 Points)
In hill climb the vehicles ability to output torque and travel up steep inclines is put to the test.
Suspension (70 Points)
Suspension pushes vehicles through large difficult obstacles and changing terrain.
Endurance (400 Points)
Endurance puts a vehicles speed and reliability to the test. In a 4 hour head to head race, teams are pushed to the limit with multiple obstacles populating the track. SAE Baja Endurance event is the culmination of competition and the only college racing series to have wheel to wheel racing.
Endurance is limited to a 2 mile track maximum. The team that puts down the most laps in the allotted time wins. Top 10 finishers are impounded following the race to have their vehicles inspected and ensure the competition is fair.