Recent internship placement
A Calvin Racing member will intern at Elon Musk's Boring Company in Summer 2027.
Calvin University · Formula SAE
Calvin's
Calvin's
Formula SAE team
With the rolling chassis behind us, we're building toward a running prototype by August 2027. Come see it in person.
MeetingWednesday6:00 PM
MeetingSaturday11:00 AM
LocationEngineering Building, South Side
9 → 70members since the team restarted
7sponsors and supporters
5subteams, each with its own lead
Aug 2027running prototype on the road
Why join Calvin Racing
Professionally made
Your design gets built for real
Every part you design is manufactured by professionals who make components for aerospace, defense, nuclear, and medical work.
Your name on it
You get the credit
Each part is credited to the student who designed it, with documentation you can put straight into a portfolio.
Workplace skills
Work the way industry works
Practice with SolidWorks, RapidHarness, and shop equipment while handling drawings, budgets, deadlines, and real companies.
Recognized worldwide
SAE International
Formula SAE is run by SAE International, and engineering employers around the world know what it means on a resume.
What is Formula SAE?
A student-built race car, judged like a product
Formula SAE is a collegiate engineering competition run by SAE International. Student teams design, build, and race small formula-style cars to a strict set of rules.
The premise is that a manufacturer has hired the team to develop a prototype race car for weekend autocross racers. Judges score how the car performs on track, and also how well the team can explain its design, its cost, and its business case.
The competition began in 1981. Today it runs at more than a dozen events around the world, including Formula Student in the UK and Germany.
How a car is scored1,000 points total
Static events · judged in person
- Design
- 150
- Cost & manufacturing
- 100
- Business presentation
- 75
Dynamic events · on track
- Acceleration
- 100
- Skidpad
- 75
- Autocross
- 125
- Endurance
- 275
- Fuel economy
- 100
Source: Formula SAE, Wikipedia
The competition
Put Calvin's name alongside the top engineering schools
Formula SAE Michigan is one of the largest student engineering competitions in the world. When our competition car is ready, the parts you design will be judged by industry engineers alongside teams from schools like these.
239team entries at Formula SAE Michigan 2026, across the combustion and electric events
- University of Michigan
- MIT
- Cornell
- Carnegie Mellon
- Georgia Tech
- UC Berkeley
- UCLA
- Caltech
- UT Austin
- Ohio State
- Purdue
- Wisconsin–Madison
- Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- Northwestern
- Columbia
- Texas A&M
- Duke
- Penn State
Schools registered for Formula SAE Michigan 2026. Source: SAE International results, combustion and electric.
The car
The prototype
Our first car is a working prototype. It lets us try ideas, break things, and learn how every system on a formula car fits together before we build for competition.
Spec sheet
Prototype- Engine
- Kawasaki 649 cc parallel twinLiquid-cooled, from a 2017 Z650
- ECU
- Performance Electronics PE3-8400AStandalone, harness designed in RapidHarness
- Frame
- Steel tube space frameOriginally fabricated by Central Michigan University
- Suspension
- Double wishbone, steel tube armsHeim-jointed to the chassis, pushrod-actuated coilovers
- Hubs & brakes
- Mazda MX-5 hubs and calipersDual Wilwood master cylinders
- Steering
- Rack and column, quick-release wheelTwo 45° joints for driver clearance
- Body
- Bent aluminum panelsDZUS fasteners for quick removal
- Stage 1 DoneRolling chassis
Frame, suspension, steering, brakes, and bodywork.
- Stage 2 NowRunning prototype
Engine, ECU, harness, and drivetrain. Driving by August 2027.
- Stage 3 · NextCompetition car
Custom, professionally manufactured parts built to the FSAE rulebook.
The prototype is not built to the full Formula SAE rulebook. Parts that stay functional, undamaged, and safe will carry over to the competition car.
Design work
Every part starts in CAD
Members model, draw, and stress-test parts in SolidWorks before anything gets cut. A few recent ones:
Portfolio & internships
Leave with a portfolio, not just a resume line
Recruiters want to see what you've built. Every part you design on Calvin Racing becomes a complete project you can show them.
For every part you design, you get
- A 3D modelBuilt in SolidWorks, the same CAD software used across industry
- Engineering drawingsDimensioned and ready for a machine shop
- AnalysisStress studies and calculations that show your design holds up
- The finished partProfessionally manufactured, with photos for your portfolio
- Your name on itCredited as the designer, so the work is clearly yours
Why it matters in interviews
Instead of class assignments, you get to talk about a real part: the problem, the tradeoffs you made, what the analysis showed, and how it performed once it was built. That's the conversation internship interviewers want to have.
Recent placementsApex Controls · JR Automation · AECOM · Calvin University · The Boring Company
Example portfolio page
Tubular truss bracket
Designed by: Andres Montana
Built by the pros
Design it here. Built by the pros.
You design the part. Professionals who manufacture for these industries make it, and your name stays on it.
- Aerospace
- Defense
- Nuclear
- Medical
You leave with professionally made parts you designed, the documentation to prove it, and experience on the same software and equipment you'll use at work. Formula SAE is run by SAE International and recognized by employers worldwide.
Careers
Where our members intern
Calvin Racing members have landed summer work and internships at these companies. In the 2025–2026 season, 1 in 2 freshmen on the team landed internships.
Subteams
Pick your system
Every member joins a subteam with its own lead. Switch any time you want to learn something new.
Power Unit & Drivetrain
Gets the engine running in the car and the power to the rear wheels.
- Engine install
- Cooling
- Intake & exhaust
- Differential
Chassis & Suspension
Owns the frame and everything that keeps the tires on the ground.
- Frame
- Control arms
- Steering
- Brakes
Electrical
Wires the car and tunes the ECU that runs the engine.
- ECU
- Wiring harness
- Sensors
- Data
Body & Aero
Designs and builds the panels, nose cone, and livery that make the car look like ours.
- Body panels
- Nose cone
- Livery
Administration
Runs the business side of the team. Any major is welcome here.
- Finance
- Sponsorship
- Marketing
- Events
Partner teams
Learning from teams that race
We're not building our first car alone. Two established Formula SAE programs in West Michigan have opened their shops and their tracks to us.
Grand Valley State University
Laker Racing
Laker Racing's leadership mentors our designers, helps us source components at a discount, and hosts our members in their shop so they can see a working program up close. Their advice is why we design our wiring harness in RapidHarness.
Photos: Nick Stroobosscher
Hope College
Hope College Formula Racing
Hope invited our leaders to their Drive Day to watch their car run, then sat down with us afterward to talk about how our two teams can work together.
Photos: Hope College Formula Racing (Formula SAE)
Join the team
Your first meeting is the application
Come to any meeting, meet the subteam leads, and pick the system you want to work on. No experience required.
- Design parts that get professionally manufactured
- Get credit for every part you design
- Practice industry software, equipment, and workplace skills
- Join an internationally recognized SAE competition program
Join Calvin Racing Opens a short Google Form
In the shop
This semester
Leadership
Who runs the team
Sponsors
Thank you to our sponsors
- Alro Metals OutletSteel and aluminum stockVisit site ↗
- Kingdom MachiningPrecision machiningVisit site ↗
- RapidHarnessWiring harness design softwareVisit site ↗
- SolidWorksCAD and simulation softwareVisit site ↗
- Grand Valley State UniversityLaker Racing: donated components and mentorshipVisit site ↗
- G-Bomb LongboardsSupporter of Calvin studentsVisit site ↗
Partner teams
We build alongside Laker Racing at Grand Valley and Hope College Formula Racing, with shop visits, drive days, and design mentorship.
Put your name on the car
Sponsors get logo placement on the livery, recognition on our website and social media, and a mention at car presentations and career fairs. Email or call us for our sponsorship proposal.
fsae@calvin.edu(616) 690-0827