World Solar Challenge

Solar-powered car race event

Bridgestone World Solar Challenge
World Solar Challenge
VenueStuart Highway
LocationAustralia
Corporate sponsorBridgestone
First race1987
Distance3,022 km (1,878 mi)
Duration4-7 days
Most wins (team)Nuon (Challenger)
Eindhoven (Cruiser)
3,000km route of World Solar Challenge.
Nuna 3 of seven time victors, Dutch Nuna team
The winner of 2009 Global Green Challenge, "Tokai Challenger", Japan Tokai University Solar Car Team

The World Solar Challenge (WSC), since 2013 named Bridgestone World Solar Challenge,[1] is an international event for solar powered cars driving 3000 kilometres through the Australian outback.

With the exception of a four-year gap between the 2019 and 2023 events, owing to the cancellation of the 2021 event,[2] the World Solar Challenge is typically held every two years. The course is over 3,022 kilometres (1,878 miles) through the Australian Outback, from Darwin, Northern Territory, to Adelaide, South Australia. The event was created to foster the development of solar-powered vehicles.[3]

The WSC attracts teams from around the world, most of which are fielded by universities or corporations, although some are fielded by high schools. It has a 32-year history spanning fifteen events, with the inaugural event taking place in 1987. Initially held once every three years, the event became biennial from the turn of the century.

Since 2001 the WSC was won seven times out of ten efforts by the Nuna team and cars of the Delft University of Technology from the Netherlands. The Tokai Challenger, built by the Tokai University of Japan, was able to win 2009 and 2011. In the most recent edition (2019), the Belgian Agoria Solar Team from KU Leuven University won.

Starting in 2007, the WSC has multiple classes. After the German team of Bochum University of Applied Sciences competed with a four-wheeled, multi-seat car, the BoCruiser (in 2009), in 2013 a radically new "Cruiser Class" was introduced, stimulating the technological development of practically usable, and ideally road-legal, multi-seater solar vehicles. Since its inception, Solar Team Eindhoven's four- and five-seat Stella solar cars from Eindhoven University of Technology (Netherlands) won the Cruiser Class in all four events so far.

Remarkable technological progress has been achieved since the General Motors led, highly experimental, single-seat Sunraycer prototype first won the WSC with an average speed of 66.9 km/h (41.6 mph). Once competing cars became steadily more capable to match or exceed legal maximum speeds on the Australian highway, the challenge rules were consistently made more demanding and challenging — for instance after Honda's Dream car first won with an average speed exceeding 55 mph (88.5 km/h) in 1996. In 2005 the Dutch Nuna team were the first to beat an average speed of 100 km/h (62 mph).

The 2017 Cruiser class winner, the five-seat Stella Vie vehicle, was able to carry an average of 3.4 occupants at an average speed of 69 km/h (43 mph). Like its two predecessors, the vehicle was successfully road registered by the Dutch team, further emphasizing the great progress in real-world compliance and practicality that has been achieved.[4][5]

The WSC held its 30th anniversary event on 8–15 October 2017.

Objective

The objective of the challenge is to promote the innovation of solar-powered cars. It is a design competition at its core, and every team/car that successfully crosses the finish line is considered successful. Teams from universities and enterprises participate. In 2015, 43 teams from 23 countries competed in the challenge.[6]

Challenge strategy

Efficient balancing of power resources and power consumption is the key to success during the challenge. At any moment in time, the optimal driving speed depends on the weather forecast and the remaining capacity of the batteries. The team members in the escort cars will continuously remotely retrieve data from the solar car about its condition and use these data as input for prior developed computer programs to work out the best driving strategy.

It is equally important to charge the batteries as much as possible in periods of daylight when the car is not driving. To capture as much solar energy as possible, the solar panels are generally directed such that these are perpendicular to the incident sun rays. Sometimes the whole solar array is tilted for this purpose.

Important rules

  • The timed portion of the challenge stops at the outskirts of Adelaide, 2998 km from Darwin. However, for the timings recorded at that point to count, competitors must reach the official finish line in the centre of the city under solar power alone.
  • As the challenge utilises public roads, the cars have to adhere to the normal traffic regulations.
  • A minimum of 2 and maximum 4 drivers have to be registered. If the weight of a driver (including clothes) is less than 80 kg (180 lb), ballast will be added to make up the difference.
  • Driving time is between 8:00 and 17:00 (from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.). In order to select a suitable place for the overnight stop (alongside the highway) it is possible to extend the driving period for a maximum of 10 minutes, which extra driving time will be compensated by a starting time delay the next day.
  • At various points along the route there are checkpoints where every car has to pause for 30 minutes. Only limited maintenance tasks (no repairs) are allowed during these compulsory stops.
  • The capacity of the batteries is limited to a mass for each chemistry (such as Lithium Ion) equivalent to approximately 5 kWh maximum. At the start of the route, the batteries may be fully charged. Batteries may not be replaced during the competition, except in the situation of a breakdown. However, in that case, a penalty time will apply.
  • Except for the maximum outer dimensions, there are no further restrictions on the design and construction of the car.
  • The deceleration of the dual braking system must be at least 3.8 m/s2 (149.6 in/s2).

Rule evolution

  • By 2005, several teams were handicapped by the South Australian speed limit of 110 km/h (68 mph), as well as the difficulties of support crews keeping up with 130 km/h (81 mph) solar vehicles. It was generally agreed that the challenge of building a solar vehicle capable of crossing Australia at vehicular speeds had been met and exceeded. A new challenge was set: to build a new generation of solar car, which, with little modification, could be the basis for a practical proposition for sustainable transport.
  • Entrants to the 2007 event chose between racing in the Adventure and Challenge classes. Challenge class cars were restricted to 6 square meters of Si solar collectors (a 25% reduction), and later to 3 square meters for GaAs, driver access and egress were required to be unaided, seating position upright, steering controlled with a steering wheel, and many new safety requirements were added. Competitors also had to adhere to the new 130 km/h (81 mph) speed limit across the Northern Territory portion of the Stuart Highway. The 2007 event again featured a range of supplementary classes, including the Greenfleet class, which features a range of non-solar energy-efficient vehicles exhibiting their fuel efficiency.
  • For the 2009 challenge class several new rules were adopted, including the use of profiled tyres. Battery weight limits depend on secondary cell chemistries so that competitors have similar energy storage capabilities. Battery mass is now 20 kg for Li-ion and Li-polymer battery (was reduced from 25 and 21 kg in the past).
  • In 2013, a new Cruiser Class was introduced. The route took place in four stages. Final placings were based on a combination of time taken (56.6%), number of passengers carried (5.7%), battery energy from the grid between stages (18.9%), and a subjective assessment of practicality (18.9%)
  • In the 2015 Cruiser Class regulations, the scoring formula emphasized practicality less than before. Elapsed time will account for 70% of the score, passengers 5%, grid energy use 15%, and practicality 10%.
  • In 2017, solar array areas were reduced, and the Cruiser Class was changed to a Regularity Trial, with scoring based on energy efficiency and practicality.

History

The idea for the competition originates from Danish-born adventurer Hans Tholstrup.[7][8] He was the first to circumnavigate the Australian continent in a 16-foot (4.9 m) open boat. At a later stage in his life he became involved in various competitions with fuel-saving cars and trucks. Already in the 1980s, he became aware of the necessity to explore sustainable energy as a replacement for the limited available fossil fuel. Sponsored by BP, he designed the world's first solar car, called The Quiet Achiever, and traversed the 4,052 km (2,518 mi) between Sydney, New South Wales and Perth, Western Australia in 20 days. That was the precursor of the WSC.

After the 4th event, he sold the rights to the state of South Australia and leadership of the event was assumed by Chris Selwood.

The event was held every three years until 1999 when it was switched to every two years.

1987

The first edition of the World Solar Challenge was run in 1987 when the winning entry, GM's Sunraycer won with an average speed of 67 km/h (42 mph).[9] Ford Australia's "Sunchaser" came in second. The "Solar Resource", which came in 7th overall, was first in the Private Entry category.[10]

Results
Position Car No. Team Country Car Name Race Timer (HRS:MIN) Avg. Speed (km/h) Avg. Speed (mi/h)
1 88 General Motors United States Sunraycer 44:90 66.90 41.57
2 7 Australian Ford (Aurora) Australia Sunchaser 67:53 44.48 27.64
3 17 Ingenieurschule, Biel Switzerland Spirit of Biel 69:97 42.94 26.68
4 1 Australian Geographic Australia Marsupial 81:43 36.89 22.92
5 15 Charles Darwin University Australia Desert Rose 95:45 31.47 19.55
6 12 Chisholm Institute of Technology Australia Desert Cat 98:20 30.59 19.01
7 11 Solar Resource Syndicate Australia
8 19 Massachusetts Institute of Technology United States Solectria 4
9 14 Alarus Australia Alarus
10 3 Chariot of the Sun Denmark Chariot of the Sun
11 5 Hoxan Corporation Japan Pheobus II
12 8 Morphett Vale High School Australia Photon Flyer
13 4 Semiconductor Energy Lab Japan Southern Cross

1990

The 1990 WSC was won by the "Spirit of Biel", built by Biel School of Engineering and Architecture in Switzerland followed by Honda in second place.[11] Video coverage here.

Results
Position Team Country Race Timer (HRS) Avg. speed (km/h) Avg. speed (mi/h)
1 Ingenieurschule, Biel Switzerland 46.13 65 41
2 Honda R&D Japan 55.00 55 34
3 University of Michigan United States 57.25 53 33
4 Hoxan Japan 57.35 53 33
5 Western Washington University United States 58.20 54 32
6 Australian Energy Research Laboratory Australia 59.90 50 31
7 University of Maryland United States 60.71 50 31
8 Crowder College United States 62.96 48 30
9 Barossa Australia 63.29 48 30
10 Cal State LA United States 67.76 44 28
11 Cal Poly Pomona United States 68.03 44 28
12 Northern Territory University Australia 69.61 43 27
13 Monash University / Melbourne University Australia 69.81 43 27
14 Kyocera Japan 71.38 42 26
15 Star Micronics Pty Ltd. Australia 80.06 38 23
16 Simon Co Ltd Japan 90.94 33 21
17 Dimitri Lajovic Australia 94.71 32 20
18 Konawaena High School United States 96.21 31 20
19 Dripstone High School Australia 96.57 31 19
20 Annesley College Australia 96.83 31 19
21 Hirotaka Oyabu Japan 96.83 30 19
22 Waseda University Japan 96.83 30 19
23 Stewart Lister New Zealand 96.83 29 18
24 Queens University Canada 96.83 26 16
25 Aisin Seiki Co/AISOL Japan 96.83 25 16
26 Yamawaki Japan 96.83 22 14
27 Solar Research Association 96.83 21 13
28 Semiconductor Energy Lab Japan 96.83 21 13
29 Helio Det Germany 96.83 20 13
30 Michiro Eguchi Japan 96.83 19 12
31 Sonderborg Teknikum Denmark
32 Morphett Value High School Australia retired 16 10
33 Phil Farrand UK retired 12 8
34 Nobuaki Hosokawa Japan retired 3 2
35 Mark Jensen retired 13 8

1993

The 1993 WSC was won by the Honda Dream, and Biel School of Engineering and Architecture took second.[12] Video coverage here.

Results
Position Team Country Race Timer (HRS:MIN) Avg. speed (km/h) Avg. speed (mi/h)
1 Honda R&D Japan 35:28 84.96 52.79
2 Eng. Col. Biel Switzerland 38:30 78.27 48.64
3 Kyocera Japan 42:35 70.76 43.97
4 Waseda University Japan 42:50 70.35 43.71
5 Aurora Australia 43:00 70.08 43.55
6 Toyota Japan 46:34 64.71 40.21
7 Northern Territory University Australia 46:50 64.34 39,98
8 Cal Poly Pomona United States 47:21 63.64 39.54
9 George Washington University United States 47:46 63.08 39.20
10 Zero 2 Darwin Australia 48:38 61.96 38.50
11 University of Michigan United States 49.07 61.35 38.12
12 Nissan Motor Company Japan 50:21 59.85 37.19
13 Cal State LA United States 50:37 59.53 36.99
14 Stanford University United States 51:38 58.36 36.26
15 Philips Solar Kiwi New Zealand 60:36 49.72 30.90
16 Mabuchi Motor Japan 60:57 49.44 30.72
17 Sofix Japan 64:56 46.41 28.84
18 Tokai University Japan 74:22 40.52 25.18
19 Monash University / Melbourne University Australia 74:50 40.27 25.02
20 Laughing Sun Japan 75:48 39.75 24.70
21 Mino Family Japan 76:21 39.47 24.53
22 University of Oklahoma United States 79:37 37.85 23.52
23 Sonderborg Tekikum Denmark 79:43 37.80 23.49
24 Ashiya University Japan 79:48 37.76 23.46
25 Dripstone High School Australia 81:17 37.76 23.03
26 Panda-san Japan 84:15 35.77 22.23
27 Solar Flair UK 84:57 35.47 22.04
28 KIA Motors South Korea 85:27 35.26 21.91
29 Team Alarus Australia 86:42 34.76 21.50
30 Annesley College Australia 87:35 34.48 21.38
31 Hokuriku Electric Japan 89:47 33.56 20.85
32 Hokkaido Auto Japan 87:30 32.08 19.93
33 Team Doraemon Japan 79:50 34.77 21.61
34 Solar Japan Japan 80:10 31.73 19.72
35 Mitcham Girls High School Australia 80:10 27.39 17.02
36 Morphett Vale High School Australia 67:13 31.33 19.47
37 University of Puerto Rico United States 62:36 30.08 18.69
38 Team New England United States 53:02 28.13 17.48
39 Le Soleil Japan 56:34 26.38 16.39
40 University of Western Ontario Canada 63:51 23.37 14.52
41 Team TR50 UK 71:20 20.92 13.00
42 San Diego State University, Suntrakker United States 52:10 20.55 12.77
43 Northern Territory Institute of T.A.F.E. Australia 37.34 26.22 16.29
44 Meadowbank T.A.F.E. Australia 26:17 24.05 14.94
45 Villanova University United States 20:50 15.07 9.36
46 JCJS Solar Car Japan 21:55 14.33 8.90
47 Banana Enterprise Brazil 16:40 15.12 9.40
48 Hama Yumeka Japan 15:25 15.03 9.34
49 Team Heliox Switzerland 08:23 24.69 15.34
50 Team Moscow Russia 03:35 9.77 6.07
Pink background indicated teams that retired before completing the Darwin to Adelaide route

1996

In the 1996 WSC, the Honda Dream and Biel School of Engineering and Architecture once again placed first and second overall, respectively.[13]

Results
Place Car no. Team name Country Time and day of finish Time (hr:mm) Average speed (km/h) Total distance
1 1 Honda R&D Japan Finished @ 17:26 / 30th 33:32 89.76 3010
2 2 United High Schools of Biel Switzerland Finished @ 10:10 / 31st 35:00 86.00 3010
3 3 Aisin Seiki Co Ltd Japan Finished @ 12:26 / 31st 37:18 80.70 3010
4 33 Mitsubishi Japan Finished @ 11:17 / 1st 45:07 66.72 3010
5 52 University of Queensland Australia Finished @ 12:34 / 1st 46:24 64.87 3010
6 23 Waseda University Japan Finished @ 12:48 / 1st 46:38 64.55 3010
7 15 Northern Territory University Australia Finished @ 14:12 / 1st 48:02 62.66 3010
8 24 O.S.U. Japan Finished @ 16:02 / 1st 49:52 60.36 3010
9 99 University of New South Wales Australia Finished @ 13:42 / 2nd 56:32 53.24 3010
10 60 Tokyo Salesian Polytechnic Japan Finished @ 09:36 / 3rd 61.26 49.00 3010
11 100 Queens University Canada Finished @ 09:39 / 3rd 61.29 48.96 3010
12 96 University of Western Ontario Canada Finished @ 12:09 / 3rd 63.59 47.04 3010
13 10 Tokai HS Japan Finished @ 13:45 / 3rd 65.35 45.90 3010
14 20 Mino Family Japan Finished @ 15:07 / 3rd 66.57 44.96 3010
15 17 Tokai University Japan Finished @ 15:20 / 3rd 67.10 44.81 3010
16 5 Lake Tuggeranong College Australia Finished @ 15:25 / 3rd 67.15 44.76 3010
17 88 Crested Ibis Japan Finished @ 16:01 / 3rd 67.51 44.36 3010
18 53 SunBa Brazil Finished @ 16:01 / 3rd 68.43 43.80 3010
19 777 Team Kataro Japan Finished @ 17:46 / 3rd 70.12 42.88 3010
20 8 Helios France Finished @ 09:59 / 4th 70.49 42.50 3010
21 400 France for W.S.C. France Finished @ 10:41 / 4th 71.31 42.90 3010
22 6 Hokkaido Automo. Eng. College Japan Finished @ 11:32 / 4th 72.22 41.59 3010
23 2001 Kirenjaku Japan Finished @ 12:27 / 4th 73.17 41.07 3010
24 45 Nippon Electronics College Japan Finished @ 12:44 / 4th 73.34 40.91 3010
25 16 UC Berkeley / Stanford University United States Finished @ 13:27 / 4th 74.17 40.52 3010
26 32 Soenderborg Teknikum Denmark Finished @ 13:31 / 4th 74.21 40.48 3010
27 66 Northern Sun Canada Finished @ 13:35 / 4th 74.25 40.45 3010
28 999 Jona Sun Japan Finished @ 15:09 / 4th 75.59 39.61 3010
29 49 Yokohama National University Japan Finished @ 10:14 / 5th 80:04 37.59 3010
30 69 Pumpkinseed Japan Finished @ 12:54 / 5th 82:44 36.38 3010
31 18 Annesley College Australia Finished @ 14:01 / 5th 83:51 35.90 3010
32 9 South Bank University UK Finished @ 14:14 / 5th 84:04 35.80 3010
　 11 Los Altos High School (Hacienda Heights, California) United States North of Adelaide 　 　
　 19 Akita Japan North of Adelaide 　 　
　 29 Mexico Team Mexico withdrawn 　 　 1927.2
　 21 Detlef Schmitz Germany withdrawn 　 　 1690

1999

The 1999 WSC was finally won by a "home" team, the Australian Aurora team's Aurora 101 took the prize while Queen's University was the runner-up in the most closely contested WSC so far. The SunRayce class of American teams was won by Massachusetts Institute of Technology.[14]

Results
Place Car no. Team Car name Class Country Date in Time in Distance (km) Total Time (HH:MM) Avg Speed (km/h)
1 101 Aurora Aurora Silicon/Exotic Australia Oct 21 16:36 2998.7 41:06 72.96
2 100 Queens University Radiance Silicon/Exotic Canada Oct 21 17:03 2998.7 41:33 72.12
3 52 University of Queensland Sunshark Silicon/Exotic Australia Oct 22 08:20 2998.7 41:50 71.86
4 15 Northern Territory University Desert Rose Silicon/Exotic Australia Oct 22 08:44 2998.7 42:14 71.00
5 3 Kanazawa Institute of Technology KIT Golden Eagle Silicon/Exotic Japan Oct 22 11:03 2998.7 44:33 67.31
6 8 Tamagawa Solar Challengers Tamagawa Super Genbow Silicon/Exotic Japan Oct 22 11:56 2998.7 45:26 66.00
7 10 Lake Tuggeranong College Spirit of Canberra Silicon/Exotic Australia Oct 22 12:01 2998.7 45:31 65.86
8 6 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Manta GTX Cut-out Class United States Oct 22 12:04 2998.7 45:34 65.81
9 2 University of Michigan Maize Blaze Silicon/Exotic United States Oct 22 14:04 2998.7 47:34 63.04
10 24 Osaka Sangyo University OSU Model S Silicon/Exotic Japan Oct 22 14:51 2998.7 48:21 62.02
11 4 Solar Motions Cascade Cruiser Private United States Oct 22 14:51 2998.7 48:21 62.02
12 59 Helios Helios 2 Silicon/Exotic France Oct 22 17:32 2998.7 51:24 58.34
13 1 Tokai Shoyo High School Shoyo Falcon Secondary School Japan Oct 23 9:50 2998.7 52:20 57.30
14 26 SA Solar Car Consortium Ned Silicon Australia Oct 23 12:43 2998.7 55:13 54.31
15 999 Jona Sun Jona Sun Private Japan Oct 23 13:15 2998.7 55:45 53.79
16 65 Tokyo Salesian Polytechnic Ikuei Neo II Silicon Japan Oct 23 14:21 2998.8 56:51 52.75
17 16 Junkyard Junkyard Private Japan Oct 23 14:24 2998.7 56:54 52.70
18 50 University of New South Wales Sunswift II Silicon/Exotic Australia Oct 23 14:44 2998.7 57:14 52.39
19 5 Aoyama Gakuin AGU Aglaia Cut-out Class Japan Oct 23 15:51 2998.7 58:21 51.39
20 41 Southbank University of ESC Mad Dog Silicon/Exotic UK Oct 23 16:41 2998.7 59:11 50.67
21 23 Central Queensland University Capricorn Solar Flair Silicon Australia Oct 24 8:57 2998.7 60:27 49.61
22 142 University of Missouri-Rolla Solar Miner II Cut-out Class United States Oct 24 11:55 2998.7 63:27 47.26
23 35 University of Minnesota Aurora II Cut-out Class United States Oct 24 12:01 2998.7 63:31 47.21
24 63 Futura Futura 2 Private Italy Oct 24 13:42 2998.7 65:12 45.99
25 124 University of Waterloo Midnight Sun V Cut-out Class Canada Oct 25 14:45 2998.7 75:15 39.85
26 2001 Kirenjaku Kirenjaku IV Private Japan Oct 26 12:00 2998.7 81:30 36.79
27 634 Kashiwa kai-Musashi Tech Musashi Cut-out Class Japan Oct 26 13:38 2998.7 83:08 36.07
28 22 Shiga SPD Polytech College Polytech Spirit Silicon/Exotic Japan Oct 26 14:09 2998.7 83:39 35.85
29 13 Kormilda College Towards Tomorrow Secondary School Australia Oct 26 2998.7 withdrawn due to time penalties
30 18 Annesley College EOS Secondary School Australia Oct 24 1842.0 withdrawn
31 27 Detlef Schmitz Helio Det 4 Private Germany Oct 23 1591.0 withdrawn
32 34 Club Solar Car Denmark Solar Car Denmark 3 Secondary School Denmark Oct 23 1489.0 withdrawn
33 28 Sunspeed Singapore Polytech Sunspeed 1 Silicon Singapore Oct 21 987.0 withdrawn
34 12 Dripstone High School Aquila Secondary School Australia Oct 20 830.0 withdrawn
35 42 Southern Cross College Secondary School Australia Oct 20 830.0 withdrawn
36 58 Newburgh Sol Machine NFA Secondary School United States Oct 19 522.0 withdrawn
37 1999 Winston High School Acclivus Secondary School United States Oct 19 475.0 withdrawn
38 33 Tsuroka National College of Technology Green Leaf IV Silicon Japan 19/10 421.0 withdrawn
39 9 Solar Stealth Solar Stealth Secondary School United States Oct 19 387.0 withdrawn
40 51 Mannum High School Secondary School Australia Oct 17 70.0 withdrawn

2001

The 2001 WSC was won by Nuna of the Delft University of Technology from the Netherlands, participating for the first time. Aurora took second place.[15][16][17]

Results
Rank Car No Team Car Name Class Country Date In Time In Distance (km) Total Time (HH:MM) Avg Speed (km/h)
1 3 Nuna Nuna Development Netherlands Nov 21 17:09 2997.8 32:39 91.81
2 101 Aurora Vehicle Association Aurora Development Australia Nov 22 08:43 2997.8 33:13 90.26
3 2 University of Michigan M-Pulse Development United States Nov 22 09:49 2997.8 34:19 87.37
4 142 University of Missouri-Rolla SolarMiner III Development United States Nov 22 13:14 2997.8 37:44 79.45
5 100 Queens University Mirage Production Canada Nov 22 13:43 2997.8 38:13 78.45
6 77 University of Tamagawa (Team A) White Dolphin Production Japan Nov 22 14:53 2997.8 39:23 76.12
7 10 Lake Tuggeranong College Spirit of Canberra Production Australia Nov 22 16:07 2997.8 40:37 73.81
8 15 Northern Territory University Desert Rose Development Australia Nov 22 16:22 2997.8 40:52 73.36
9 33 Kanazawa Institute of Technology KIT Golden Eagle Development Japan Nov 22 17:03 2997.8 41:33 72.14
10*** 4 Solar Motion SoMo Development United States Nov 23 09:07 2997.8 42:37 70.35
11 52 University of New South Wales Sunswift II Development Australia Nov 23 10:01 2997.8 43:31 68.89
12 88 University of Tamagawa(Team B) Dolphin Production Japan Nov 23 10:32 2997.8 44:02 68.08
13 11 Tokai University Tokai Spirit 2001 Production Japan Nov 23 10:51 2997.8 44:21 67.59
14 12 University of Toronto Blue Sky Faust Development Canada Nov 23 10:56 2997.8 44:26 67.47
15 24 University of Waterloo Midnight Sun VI Development Canada Nov 23 10:57 2997.8 44:27 67.45
16 41 South Bank University Mad Dog 3 Production UK Nov 23 13:28 2997.8 46:58 63.83
17 55 Ashiya University Sky-Ace Tiga Production Japan Nov 23 14:49 2997.8 48:19 62.05
18 5 AGU Solar Car Project AGU Aglaia Stock Japan Nov 23 14:52 2997.8 48:22 61.98
19 67 Tokyo Salesian Polytechnic Ikuei Neo II Production Japan Nov 23 14:58 2997.8 48:28 61.86
20 59 Helios Helios 2-001 Development France Nov 24 09:18 2997.8 51:48 61.26
21 26 South Australia Solar Car Consortium Ned Stock Australia Nov 24 10:13 2997.8 52:23 57.23
22 17 Solehada Solelhada Stock France Nov 24 10:43 2997.8 53:13 56.33
23 51 Mannum Highschool Christine Production Australia Nov 26 16:17 2997.8 89:17 34.94
24 2001 Team of Kirenjaku Kirenjaku Mini Production Japan Nov 27 13:27 2531.6
25 6 Sungroper Solar Car Association Sungroper Stock Australia Nov 26 17:03 2301.5
26 13 Kormilda College Towards Tomorrow Stock Australia Nov 26 11:34 2257.3
27 4740 Team Ornithorhychus Ornithorhychus Stock Australia Nov 26 12:35 2063.8
28 50 Burdekin Highschool Spirit of Burdekin Stock Australia Nov 26 12:48 2008.6
29 62 South Australia Solar Car Consortium Kelly Production Australia Nov 23 15:31 1819.7
30 7 Vehicle Solaire Neo-Caledonien Defi Solaire Production New Caledonia Nov 25 12:35 1531.0
75 Hutt Valley High School Hutt Valley Stock New Zealand
Withdrawn
21 HelioDet Heliodet 5 Stock Germany
Withdrawn
42 Southern Cross College Southern Exposure Stock Australia
Withdrawn
Greenfleet Honda Insight Demonstration Australia 2997.8
2500 Biel Spirit of Biel Demonstration Switzerland 2997.9
53 Honda Australia Insight Demonstration Australia 2997.9
18 Annesley College EOS Spirit of Unley Demonstration Australia 2997.9
***Solar Motion was originally recorded arriving in 4th place at 12:07 on Nov 22, but was later penalized

2003

In the 2003 WSC Nuna 2, the successor to the winner of 2001 won again, with an average speed of 97 km/h (60 mph), while Aurora took second place again.[18]

Results
Rank Car No. Team Car Name Country Date In Time In Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Avg Speed (km/h)
1 3 Nuon Nuna II Netherlands Oct 22 15:24 2997.8 30:54 97.02
2 101 Aurora Aurora Australia Oct 22 17:07 2997.8 32:37 91.90
3 9 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Tesseract United States Oct 23 08:22 2997.8 32:52 91.20
4 100 Queens University Gemini Canada Oct 23 13:46 2997.8 38:16 78.33
5 41 Bochum Hans Go Germany Oct 23 16:26 2997.8 40:56 73.24
6 32 Principia College Ra V United States Oct 23 16:50 2997.8 41:20 72.53
7 95 Southern Taiwan University Apollo IV Taiwan Oct 24 10:30 2997.8 44:00 68.13
8 62 SA Consortium Kelly Australia Oct 24 11:45 2997.8 45:15 66.25
9 5 Aoyama Gakuin University AGU Aglaia Japan Oct 24 15:56 2997.8 49:26 60.65
10 99 Aurora/RMIT Southern Aurora Australia Oct 25 10:06 2997.8 52:36 56.99
11 13 Kormilda College Towards Tomorrow Australia Oct 25 15:03 2997.8 57:33 52.09
12 4 Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Suria Kar 2 Malaysia Oct 26 09:39 2997.8 61:09 49.02
13 66 National Taiwan University Formosun II Taiwan Oct 26 09:51 2997.8 61:21 48.86
14 21 HelioDet Heliodet 6 Germany Oct 28 13:39 2997.8 82:49 36.20
77 Hachinohe Institute of Technology Hi Tech Japan Oct 28 2302.9
8 Houston Solar Race Team Sundancer United States Oct 27 2188.1
59 Helios III Roadrunner France Oct 27 2208.2
6 Leeming Senior High Sungroper Australia Oct 27 1565.6
51 Mannum High School Christine Australia Oct 27 1001.0
42 Southern Cross Catholic College Southern Exposure Australia Oct 28 1000.6
2003 Winston Solar Car Team Astropower United States Oct 26 720.2
145 Universidad del Turabo The Paradise Puerto Rico Oct 26 373.8

2005

In the 2005 WSC the top finishers were the same for the third consecutive event as Nuon's Nuna 3 won with a record average speed of 102.75 km/h (63.85 mph), and Aurora was the runner-up.[15]

Results
Rank Car No. Team Car Name Class Country Arrival Time km Speed (km/h)
1 3 Nuon Nuna 3 Open Netherlands 13:41 Wed 28th 2998.3 102.75
2 101 Aurora Aurora Open Australia 17:05 Wed 28th 2998.3 92.03
3 2 University of Michigan Momentum Open United States 08:48 Thurs 29th 2998.3 90.03
4 81 Ashiya University Sky Ace TIGA Open Japan 09:15 Thurs 29th 2998.3
5 66 National Taiwan University Formosun 3 Open Taiwan 11:31 Thurs 29th 2998.3
6 6 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Tesseract Open United States 15:30 Thurs 29th 2998.3
7 95 Apollo Apollo 5 Open Taiwan 15:45 Thurs 29th 2998.3
8 41 Bochum Hans Go Open Germany 16:35 Thurs 29th 2998.3
9 8 University of Twente Solutra Open Netherlands 10:36 Fri 30th 2998.3
10 65 University of Calgary Soleon Production Canada 13:45 Fri 30th 2998.3
11 7 Umicore Solar Car Umicore Open Belgium 14:34 Fri 30th 2998.3
12 62 TAFE SA Kelly Production Australia 15:43 Fri 30th 2998.3
13 5 Aoyama Gakuin University Aglaia Production Japan 9:56 Sat 1st 2998.3
14 13 Kormilda College Towards Tomorrow Stock Australia 13:24 Sat 1st 2998.3
15 168 Southern Taiwan University Phoenix Open Taiwan 14:35 Sat 1st 2998.3
16 80 Sunspeed Jules Verne Open France 10:52 Sun 2nd 2726
17 96 University of Western Ontario Sunstang Open Canada 15:23 Sun 2nd 1573
18 20 Leeming Senior High Sungroper Production Australia 19:06 Sat 1st 591
*** 49 UNSW Sydney Sunswift III Open Australia 17:10 Thurs 29th 2998.3
99 Southern Aurora Southern Aurora Open Australia officially withdrawn Alice Springs 16:13 - 27th Sept
21 Heliodet Heliodet Production Germany officially withdrawn Dunmarra 15:45 - 26th Sept
*** Sunswift were unable to qualify, but were given permission to run with the event

2007

The 2007 WSC saw the Dutch Nuon Solar team score their fourth successive victory with Nuna 4 in the Challenge Class, averaging 90.07 km/h (55.97 mph) under the new, more restrictive rules, while the Belgian Punch Powertrain Solar Team's Umicar Infinity placed second.[19]

The Adventure Class was added this year, run under the old rules, and won by Japanese Ashiya team's Tiga.

Challenge results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Speed (km/h)
1 Nuon Netherlands 2999 33:00 90.87
2 Umicore Belgium 2999 34:36 88.05
3 Aurora Australia 2999 35:17 85.00
4 Bochum Solar World 1 Germany 2999 41:09 72.87
5 Southern Taiwan University Taiwan 2999 44:08 67.95
6 University of Twente Netherlands 2999 44:46 66.83
7 University of Michigan United States 2999 44:55 66.76
8 University of Calgary Canada 2999 51:43 57.98
9 University of Waterloo Canada 2999 54:49 54.70
10 Helios France 2999 59:24 50.80
11 Solar Fox UK 2719
12 Sinag Philippines 2691
13 Sun Speed France 2002
14 University of Chile Chile 1862
15 Queens University Canada 1345
16 Leeming HS Australia 1050
17 Gwawr UK 740
18 Heliox Switzerland 735
19 University of Malaya Malaysia 250

The Japanese Ashiya team's Tiga won the Adventure Class, run under the old rules, with an average speed of 93.53 km/h (58.12 mph).

Adventure results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Speed (km/h)
1 Ashiya University Japan 2999 32:03 93.57
2 Apollo Taiwan 2999 35:43 83.96
3 Southern Aurora Australia 2999 40:44 73.63
4 sUNSWift UNSW Sydney Australia 2999 44:11 67.88
5 University of Toronto Canada 2999 46:19 64.74
6 Christine Aurora Australia 2999 46:33 64.42
7 TAFE SA Australia 2999 50:52 58.95
8 Salesian Polytechnic University Japan 2999 58:19 51.42
9 Towards Tomorrow Australia 2896
10 University Tech Malaysia Malaysia 2719
11 HelioDet Germany 2517
12 Solar Fern New Zealand 2233
13 Stanford University United States 1864
14 University of Western Ontario Canada 1680
15 Hachinohe Institute of Technology Japan 1675
16 Polytechnique Montreal Canada 1772
17 Willetton Australia 729
18 Houston HS United States 143

2009

In 2009, the BO-Cruiser prototype from Bochum (Germany) stood out by a more practical, real world design, sporting 4 wheels and multiple seats

The 2009 WSC was won by the "Tokai Challenger", built by the Tokai University Solar Car Team in Japan with an average speed of 100.54 km/h (62.47 mph). The longtime reigning champion Nuon Solar Team's Nuna 5 finished in second place.[20]

Challenger results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Speed (km/h)
1 Tokai University Japan 3021 29:49 100.54
2 Nuon Netherlands 3021 32:38 91.88
3 University of Michigan United States 3021 33:08 90.49
4 University of New South Wales Australia 3021 39:18 76.28
5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology United States 3021 40:41 73.70
6 Aurora Australia 3021 42:20 70.82
7 Principia College United States 3021 43:23 69.11
8 University of Twente Netherlands 3021 44:53 66.80
9 Bochum Solar World 1 Germany 2896
10 Stanford University United States 2719
11 Nanyang Technological University Singapore 1953
12 Bochum Bo Cruiser Germany 1850
13 Belenos France 1645
14 University of Cambridge UK 1616
15 Sakarya University Turkey 1437
16 Istanbul Technical University Turkey 1380
17 Heliox Switzerland 1042
18 Leeming HS Australia 950
19 Willetton HS Australia 906
20 Umicore Belgium 380
21 Polytechnique Montreal Canada 287
22 Uniten Solar Ranger Team Malaysia 250
23 McMaster University Canada 146
24 ETS Canada 96

The Sunswift IV built by students at the University of New South Wales, Australia was the winner of the Silicon-based Solar Cell Class, while Japan's Osaka Sangyo University's OSU Model S won the Adventure class.

Adventure results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Speed (km/h)
1 OSU Japan 3021 34:45 86.27
2 Southern Aurora Australia 3021 44:17 67.71
3 Goko HS Japan 2719 61.77
4 Helios France 2719 58.31
5 SolarShop Kelly Australia 2217
6 Towards Tomorrow Australia 1156
7 CPDM Malaysia 514

2011

In the 2011 WSC Tokai University took their second title with an updated "Tokai Challenger" averaging 91.54 km/h (56.88 mph), and finishing just an hour before Nuna 6 of the Delft University of Technology.[21] The challenge was marred by delays caused by wildfires.

Results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Speed (km/h)
1 Tokai University Japan 2998 32:45 91.54
2 Nuon Netherlands 2998 33:50 88.60
3 University of Michigan United States 2998 35:33 84.33
4 Ashiya University Japan 2998 44:57 66.70
5 University of Twente Netherlands 2998 44:04 66.53
6 University of New South Wales Australia 2998 48:38 61.65
7 Aurora Australia 2998 48:45 61.50
8 Istanbul University Turkey 2765
9 Apollo Taiwan 2650
10 Umicore Belgium 2636
11 Stanford University United States 2547
12 Nanyang Technological University Singapore 2454
13 Team Okinawa Japan 2408
14 Sakarya University Turkey 2263
15 Massachusetts Institute of Technology United States 2222
16 Solar Energy Racers Switzerland 2221
17 Qazvin Islamic Azad University Iran 1891
18 University of Calgary Canada 1840
19 Team Solar Philippines Philippines 1815
20 UC Berkeley United States 1811
21 Onda Solare Italy 1751
22 Universidad de Chile Chile 1709
23 Anadolu Turkey 1675
24 University of Toronto Canada 1661
25 University of Cambridge UK 1487
26 Bochum Germany 1454
27 ETS Canada 1415
28 Principia College United States 1303
29 Seraaj Saudi Arabia 1269
30 University of Waterloo Canada 1116
31 University of Tehran Iran 1027
32 Solar Spirit Australia Australia 801
33 Durham University UK 552
34 Solaris India 301
35 UMP Malaysia 229
36 Uniten Solar Ranger Team Malaysia 223
37 Green Maniac South Korea 73

2013

The 2013 WSC featured the introduction of the Cruiser Class, which comprised more 'practical' solar cars with 2–4 occupants. The inaugural winner was Solar Team Eindhoven's Stella from Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands with an average speed of 74.52 km/h (46.30 mph), while second place was taken by the PowerCore SunCruiser vehicle from team Hochschule Bochum in Germany, who inspired the creation of the Cruiser Class[citation needed] by racing more practical solar cars in previous WSC events. The Australian team, the University of New South Wales solar racing team Sunswift was the fastest competitor to complete the route, but was awarded third place overall after points were awarded for 'practicality' and for carrying passengers.[22]

Cruiser Results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Person kilometers External energy (kWh) Practicality (%) Final score (%)
1 TU Eindhoven Netherlands 3022 40:14 9093 64.0 88.3 97.5
2 HS Bochum Germany 3022 41:38 6484 63.5 87.0 93.9
3 Sunswift Australia 3022 38:35 3022 64.0 70.7 92.3
4 University of Minnesota United States 3022 51:41 5454 64.0 69.3 79.2
5 Goko HS Japan 2288 70.7
6 Apollo Taiwan 1558 50.3
7 TAFE SA Solar Spirit Australia 1469 71.7
8 University of Calgary Canada 719 78.0
The 2013 German PowerCore SunCruiser entry for the new for 2013 Cruiser Class

In the Challenger Class, the Dutch team from Delft University of Technology took back the title with Nuna 7 and an average speed of 90.71 km/h (56.36 mph), while defending champions Tokai University finished second after an exciting close competition, which saw a 10–30 minute distance, though they drained the battery in final stint due to bad weather and finished some 3 hours later; an opposite situation of the previous challenge in 2011.[23]

Challenger results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Speed (km/h)
1 Nuon Netherlands 3022 33:03 90.71
2 Tokai University Japan 3022 36:22 82.43
3 University of Twente Netherlands 3022 37:38 79.67
4 Stanford University United States 3022 39:31 75.86
5 Solar Energy Racers Switzerland 3022 40:13 74.54
6 Punch Powertrain (KU Leuven) Belgium 3022 40:28 74.08
7 Team Arrow Australia 3022 43:38 68.71
8 University of Toronto Canada 3022 45:38 65.71
9 University of Michigan United States 3022 45:55 65.29
10 Onda Solare Italy 3022 48:25 61.92
11 University of Western Sydney Australia 2891
12 Kanazawa Institute of Technology Japan 2564
13 EAFIT-EPM Colombia 2505
14 Kogakuin University Japan 2450
15 KUST South Korea 2013
16 SunSPEC Singapore 1676
17 Istanbul Technical University Turkey 1613
18 ETS Canada 1530
19 Sun Shuttle China 1398
20 Jonkoping University Sweden 1301
21 ITS Indonesia 748
22 UMP Malaysia 616

The Adventure Class was won by Aurora's Aurora Evolution.[24]

Adventure results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Speed (km/h)
1 Aurora Australia 3022 38:39 77.57
2 Antakari Chile 3022 49:31 60.54
3 Sikat Solar Philippines 2487
4 IVE Hong Kong 2105
5 KAIT Japan 1533
6 Solaris Turkey 1481
7 Mississippi Choctaw HS United States 164

2015

In 2015 Solar team Eindhoven won the Cruiser Class again with their Stella Lux "family car".

The 2015 WSC was held on 15–25 October with the same classes as the 2013 challenge.

World Solar Challenge 2015-Parade at Victoria Square in Adelaide, Australia

In the Cruiser Class, the winner was once again Solar Team Eindhoven's Stella Lux from Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands with an average speed of 76.73 km/h (47.68 mph), while the second place team was Kogakuin University from Japan who was the first to cross the finish line, but did not receive as many points for passenger-kilometers and practicality. Bochum took 3rd place this year with the latest in their series of cruiser cars.[25]

Cruiser Results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Person kilometers External energy (kWh) Practicality (%) Final score (%)
1 TU Eindhoven Netherlands 3022 39:23 6044 29.68 84.5 97.27
2 Kogakuin University Japan 3022 37:52 3022 29.71 51.75 93.61
3 HS Bochum Germany 3022 48:30 4528 29.68 80.5 82.91
4 sUNSWift UNSW Sydney Australia 3022 54:03 3022 29.68 54.0 72.91
5 University of Minnesota United States 3022 58:27 4009 29.68 38.5 68.21
6 Ardingly College UK 0 12.5 61.75 42.93
7 Lodz University of Technology Poland 2113 29.83 63.5 24.19
8 Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education Hong Kong 896 29.83 51.5 21.41
9 Singapore Polytechnic Singapore 768 29.97 50 21.41
10 Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology Indonesia 1036 29.43 42.5 21.00
11 University of Tehran Iran 1161 29.97 35.75 20.05

In the Challenger Class, the team from Delft University of Technology retained the title with Nuna 8 and an average speed of 91.75 km/h (57.01 mph), while their Dutch counterparts, the University of Twente, who led most of the challenge, finished just 8 minutes behind them in second place, making 2015 the closest finish in WSC history. Tokai University passed the University of Michigan on the last day of the event to take home the bronze.[26]

Challenger results
Rank Team Country Distance (km) Time (hr:mn) Speed (km/h)
1 Nuon Netherlands 3022 37:56 91.75
2 University of Twente Netherlands 3022 38:04 91.63
3 Tokai University Japan 3022 38:50 89.41
4 University of Michigan United States 3022 38:54 89.29
5 Punch Powertrain (KU Leuven) Belgium 3022 39:19 88.10
6 Stanford University United States 3022 41:24 83.14
7 GAMF Hungary Hungary 3022 43:04 79.70
8 Team Arrow Australia 3022 45:22 76.71
9 EAFIT-EPM Colombia 3022 46:19 73:29
10 University of Western Sydney Australia 3022 46:51 72.21
11 North-West University South Africa 3022 47:22 71.70
12 University of Toronto Canada 3022 47:40 70.91
13 University of KwaZulu-Natal South Africa 3022 47:53 70.40
14 GOKO High School Japan 3022 50:22 66.74
15 Jonkoping University Sweden 3022 50:36 66.39
16 Nagoya Institute of Technology Japan 3022 50:42 66.25
17 Principia College United States 3022 54:51 60.62
18 Kanazawa Institute of Technology Japan 3022 56:24 58.91
19 Anadolu University Turkey 3022 57:48 58.00
20 Kookmin University Korea 3022 60:00 54.78
21 University of Adelaide Australia 2292
22 Cambridge University UK 2047
23 Massachusetts Institute of Technology United States 1835
24 Beijing Institute of Technology China 1823
25 Dokuz Eylül University Turkey 1575
26 MARA University of Technology Malaysia 97
27 Durham University UK 0

The Adventure Class was won by the Houston High School solar car team from Houston, Mississippi, United States.[27]

Adventure results
Rank Team Country Distance (km)
1 Houston HS United States 2441
2 TAFE SA Australia 1289
3 Liberty Christian School United States 1288

2017

The 2017 WSC was held on 8–15 October, featuring the same classes as 2015. The Dutch NUON team won again in the Challenger class, which concluded on 2017-10-12, and in the Cruiser Class, the winner was once again Solar Team Eindhoven, from the Netherlands as well.[28]

Challenger results
Rank Team Car name Country Distance (km) Average speed ((km/h))
1 Nuon Solar Team Nuna9 Netherlands 3021 km 81.2 km/h
2 University of Michigan Solar Car Team Novum United States 3021 km 77.1 km/h
3 Punch Powertrain Solar Team Punch Two Belgium 3021 km 76.2 km/h
4 Tokai University Tokai Challenger Japan 3021 km 75.9 km/h
5 Solar Team Twente RED Shift Netherlands 3021 km 75.6 km/h
6 Western Sydney Solar Team Unlimited 2.0 Australia 3021 km 65.5 km/h
7 Kogakuin University Solar Team Wing Japan 3021 km 63.8 km/h
8 46. JUsolarteam Solveig Sweden 3021 km 59.7 km/h
9 16. Stanford Solar Car Project Sundae United States 3021 km 59.5 km/h
10 4. Antakari Solar Team INTIKALLPA IV Chile 3021 km 59.1 km/h
11 77. Blue Sky Solar Racing Polaris Canada 3021 km 58.6 km/h
12 25. NITech Solar Racing Horizon 17 Japan 3021 km 58.0 km/h
Cruiser results
Rank Team Car name Country Charges P-km External energy Efficiency (P-km/kWh) Efficiency score
1 Solar Team Eindhoven Stella Vie Netherlands 6 10197 45.7 kWh 223.2 80
2 HS Bochum SolarCar-Team Thyssenkrupp Blue.Cruiser Germany 6 7865 88.2 kWh 89.2 32
3 Clenergy Team Arrow Arrow STF Australia 6 5263 91.5 kWh 57.5 20.6
4 IVE Solar Car Team SOPHIE VI Hong Kong 6 3021 45.4 kWh 66.5 0
5 University of Minnesota Solar Vehicle Project Eos II United States 6 3644 40.5 kWh 90 0
Adventure results
Team Car name Country Arrival time
Mississippi Choctaw High School Solar Car Team Tushka Hashi III United States 10/13/2018 13:56
NWU Solar Naledi South Africa 10/13/2018 15:40
Principia Solar Car Ra X United States 10/14/2018 08:39
Adelaide University Solar Racing Team Lumen II Australia 10/14/2018 09:35
MDH Solar Team MDH Solar Car Sweden 10/14/2018 09:40
GOKO HIGH SCHOOL MUSOUSHIN Japan 10/14/2018 09:43
KUST (Kookmin University Solar car Team) Taegeuk South Korea 10/14/2018 10:24
Illini Solar Car Argo United States 10/14/2018 10:47
Team Sonnenwagen Aachen HUAWEI Sonnenwagen Germany 10/14/2018 10:50
MTAA Super Sol Invictus MTAA Super Charge Australia 10/14/2018 11:05
PrISUm Penumbra United States 10/13/2018 13:25
SunSPEC SunSPEC5 Singapore 10/13/2018 12:49
UiTM Eco Photon TUAH Malaysia 10/14/2018 11:20
UNSW Solar Racing Team Sunswift Violet Australia 10/13/2018 09:51
Flinders Automotive Solar Team Investigator Mk III Australia 10/13/2018 14:53
University of Tehran Solar Car Team Persian Gazelle IV Iran 10/16/2018 17:00
Durham University Electric Motorsport DUSC United Kingdom 10/14/2018 12:52
STC-2 Nikola Nikola Thailand 10/13/2018 11:40
ITU Solar Car Team B.O.W. ISTANBUL Turkey 10/14/2018 12:16
RVCE Solar Car Team ARKA India 10/16/2018 17:00
Lodz Solar Team Eagle Two Poland 10/13/2018 15:05
TAFE SA SAV Australia 10/13/2018 10:51
National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences (KUAS) & St. John's University Solar Car Team Apollo VIII Taiwan 10/14/2018 08:46

2019

The 2019 WSC was held from 13–20 October. 53 teams from 24 countries entered the competition,[29][30] featuring the same three classes, Challenger (30 teams), Cruiser (23 teams) and Adventure.[31] In the Challenger class, Agoria Solar Team (formerly Punch Powertrain) won for the first time. Tokai University Solar Car Team finished in second place.[32]

In the Cruiser class, Solar Team Eindhoven won their fourth consecutive title.[33] Despite multiple incidents on the road, Team Sonnenwagen Aachen managed to beat other teams and finished in 6th position.

Several teams had mishaps. Vattenfall was leading when their car Nuna X caught fire. The driver was uninjured, but the vehicle was destroyed. It was the first no-finish for that team in 20 years.[30] Others were badly affected by strong winds.

Dutch team Twente was leading the journey at 100 km/h (62 mph), when their car was forced off the road by winds and rolled over. The driver was taken to hospital. Within 30 minutes team Sonnenwagen Aachen was also blown off the road north of Coober Pedy, the driver was not hurt. An 80 km/h (50 mph) speed limit was then imposed by event officials, lifted when conditions improved. The day before, wind damage to solar panels put the team from Western Sydney University out of the challenge. The driver of Agoria from Belgium escaped injury when their vehicle was "uprooted" at 100 km/h (62 mph) by severe winds, but still went on to win the Challenger class.[30][34]

Challenger results
Rank Team Car name Country Distance (km) Average speed ((km/h))
1 Agoria Solar Team Bluepoint Belgium 3019 km 86.6 km/h
2 Tokai University Solar Car Team Tokai Challenger Japan 3019 km 86.1 km/h
3 University of Michigan Solar Car Team Electrum USA 3019 km 79.6 km/h
4 Top Dutch Solar Racing Green Lightning Netherlands 3019 km 78.4 km/h
5 Kogakuin University Solar Team Kute Eagle Japan 3019 km 72.1 km/h
6 Team Sonnenwagen Aachen e.V. Covestro Sonnenwagen Germany 3019 km 71.8 km/h
7 Antakari Solar Team INTIKALLPA V Chile 3019 km 66.9 km/h
8 Nagoya Institute of Technology Solar Racing Horizon Ace Japan 3019 km 66.5 km/h
9 Eclipse Eclipse X Canada 3019 km 65.1 km/h
10 JU Solar Team Axelent Sweden 3019 km 64.6 km/h
11 Blue Sky Solar Racing Viridian Canada 3019 km 63.2 km/h
Cruiser results
Rank Team Country Stages completed Score
1 Solar Team Eindhoven Netherlands 3 111.7
2 sUNSWift UNSW Sydney Australia 3 56.1
3 IVE Engineering Solar Car Team Hong Kong 3 44.2
4 SolarCar-Team Hochschule Bochum Germany 1 48.4
5 Sun Shuttle China 1 17.4
6 University of Minnesota USA 1 14.6
Adventure results

2021

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia the WSC closed entries three months earlier than normal, on 18 December 2020. They were then to "… review all current government measures relating to social distancing, density and contact tracing, international travel restrictions and isolation requirements."[35] On 12 February 2021, the South Australian Government confirmed the cancellation of the 2021 staging of the event. While the COVID-19 pandemic was not explicitly cited as the reason, the "complexities of international border closures" affecting Australia at the time appear to be the primary reason for the event's cancellation. The same statement also noted the next event would take place in October 2023 - at least 962 days from the date of announcement, and resulting in a four-year gap between events.[2] Registered teams should receive a full refund of all fees.[35]

2023

The 2023 World Solar Challenge was held from October 22-29. At the beginning of the race, 31 teams were participating, with 23 in the Challenger division and 8 in the Cruiser division.[36] The Challenger division was won by defending champions Innoptus (formerly Agoria) with an average speed of 88.2km/h, and the Cruiser division was won by UNSW Sunswift with a score of 91.1.[37][38] Uniquely, no Cruisers were able to finish the race this year.

Many of the leading teams faced trouble during the competition. Michigan experienced electrical issues during qualifying, and had to start last. German team Sonnenwagen was blown off the road just outside of Port Agusta. Despite their car coming out relatively unscathed, they had to withdraw due to new regulations.[39] On day 4, Tokai had to stop for several hours for repairs after running over a cattle grid. Kogakuin had consistent problems with their MPPT charge controller, and reported in an Instagram post that their panels were generating less than half the power than they should have been.[40]

See also

  • iconRenewable energy portal
  • iconEnergy portal

Other solar vehicle challenges

Movie

  • Race the Sun, a movie loosely based on a participating team

References

  1. ^ "Mission: Serving Society with Superior Quality". 2017 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. Bridgestone. 2017. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  2. ^ a b "2021 CHALLENGE UPDATE". worldsolarchallenge.org. South Australian Tourist Commission. 12 February 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2021. The 16th edition of the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge will not go ahead from 22-30 October this year.
  3. ^ "History". worldsolarchallenge.org. South Australian Tourism Commission. 9 February 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  4. ^ "KENTEKEN CHECK PP-301-S (Dutch public registration info for license-plate PP-301-S)" (in Dutch). Autoweek.nl. 6 August 2017. Archived from the original on 8 October 2017. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  5. ^ "2015 Team List". World Solar Challenge. 5 June 2015. Archived from the original on 13 June 2015. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  6. ^ "An epic journey revisited". The People & Environment Blog. National Museum of Australia. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2017.
  7. ^ Barry, Courtney (22 October 2003). "RACING; Here They Come, as Fast as the Sun Will Carry Them". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 June 2017.
  8. ^ 1987 World Solar Teams IFP Lab Site, Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  9. ^ Wakefield, Ernest H. (1 October 1998). History of the Electric Automobile (Softbound). SAE International. ISBN 978-0-7680-0125-9. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  10. ^ 1990 World Solar Challenge Teams IFP Lab Site, Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  11. ^ 1993 World Solar Challenge Entry List IFP lab site, Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  12. ^ 1996 World Solar Challenge Team IFP Lab Site, Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  13. ^ 1999 World Solar Challenge Teams IFP Lab Site, Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Honour Roll - 1987 to 2013". World Solar Challenge. 4 June 2014. Archived from the original on 11 June 2015. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  15. ^ "Final Results for the 2001 Solar Odyssey". World Solar Challenge. 27 November 2001. Archived from the original on 13 June 2002. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  16. ^ "Teams List 2001". World Solar Challenge. Archived from the original on 6 June 2002. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  17. ^ "Zero to Darwin Project - 2003WSC - Final result". www.zdp.co.jp (in Japanese). 28 October 2003. Archived from the original on 30 October 2005. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  18. ^ WSC 2007 results
  19. ^ WSC 2009 results
  20. ^ WSC 2011 results
  21. ^ "WSC 2013 Cruiser class results" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  22. ^ WSC 2013 Challenger class results
  23. ^ "WSC 2013 Adventure class results" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  24. ^ WSC 2015 Cruiser class results
  25. ^ WSC 2015 Challenger class results
  26. ^ "WSC 2015 Adventure class results" (PDF). World Solar Challenge. 6 November 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  27. ^ "2017 World Solar Challenge Results". World Solar Challenge. Archived from the original on 15 May 2018. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  28. ^ "CHARGING THE FUTURE – NEXT-GEN DREAMS TO REALITY | World Solar Challenge 2019". www.worldsolarchallenge.org. Archived from the original on 16 July 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  29. ^ a b c Slessor, Camron; Campbell, Claire (17 October 2019). "Leading car at World Solar Challenge bursts into flames forcing team Vattenfall out of challenge". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  30. ^ "Chasing the sun: the World Solar Challenge 2019". The Guardian. 19 October 2019. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
  31. ^ "Agoria claims first title". worldsolarchallenge.org. South Australian Tourism Commission. 17 October 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  32. ^ "It's cruise control all the way for Solar Team Eindhoven". worldsolarchallenge.org. South Australian Tourism Commission. 21 October 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  33. ^ Campbell, Claire; Opie, Rebecca (16 October 2019). "Two cars blown off road during World Solar Challenge near Coober Pedy". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  34. ^ a b "COVID-19 and the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge". worldsolarchallenge.org. South Australian Tourism Commission. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  35. ^ "Charging towards the future…31 teams off to chase the sun… | World Solar Challenge 2023". worldsolarchallenge.org. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  36. ^ "World Solar Challenge 2023". worldsolarchallenge.org. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  37. ^ "World Solar Challenge 2023". worldsolarchallenge.org. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  38. ^ "Day 5: We are out of the race!". Team Sonnenwagen Aachen. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  39. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 20 December 2023.

External links

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