As some may know, the team is transitioning away from the SAE Supermileage Competition, and beginning to enroll in the Shell Eco-Marathon. One of the major rules changed that comes with this transition regards the vehicle’s brakes!

We have a dedicated brakes team this semester, focused on redesigning the brakes to comply with Shell’s rulebook. Previously, the vehicle was equipped with a single cable-operated bicycle brake that acted directly on the rear wheel, actuated by a hand lever. This is the system that our drivetrain and body were designed around. Shell’s rules require both front and rear brakes. These brakes must be hydraulic calipers acting on brake rotors, with separate pedal actuation and hand lever actuation. A big design change for us!

We’ve been hard at work removing the old brake assemblies, and upgrading with parts that we were able to purchase, thanks to our Minutefund Supporters!

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Here are the old brake pedals being cut away from the body, these pedals were glued in place using an industrial strength glue right before this year’s competition. Cutting the pedals of was the easiest option.

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And here are our new pedals, mocked up in the vehicle. The mounting for these pedals will be designed to be adjustable to accomodate multiple drivers of different heights.

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And this is our current redesign of our vehicle’s manual clutch! We have modified our drive-side clutch plate with mounting points for a motorcycle brake rotor. Almost ready for the CNC!