The drivetrain division is responsible for designing and implementing the systems that transfer power from the propulsion device to the driven wheels of our vehicles.

This year, our primary project is a complete ground-up redesign of the drivetrain for our electric Urban Concept vehicle. Members will work through every stage of the engineering process, from initial conceptualization such as CAD models to manufacturing, assembly, and finally seeing their hard work put to the test on the track at the Shell Eco-marathon competition in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Our other main project focuses on our Hydrogen Fuel Cell prototype vehicle, where we will implement a newly designed drivetrain on a brand new chassis. Across all projects, members will gain hands-on experience solving complex mechanical challenges, and ultimately see their designs come to life on our vehicles.

Since the conception of UBC Supermileage in 2001, the Gas Engine division has been constantly pushing the boundaries in ultra fuel-efficient combustion engine technology, holding a team record of 3145 mpg! The division develops our gas engine from the ground up, including a custom designed & fabricated engine block, heavily modified valvetrain, and a custom electronic control systems. We conduct validation testing and tune the engine for fuel-efficiency on our in-house developed dynamometer bench. All in all, the engine division offers exposure to a great deal of mechanical design, systems engineering, and testing, often using tools such as Solidworks, ANSYS Mechanical, and MATLAB to build the most efficient engine humanly possible.

The Power Systems Division is responsible for the design and validation of the electrical systems that power and drive our vehicles.

Our projects focus on energy storage and power delivery to key components like motors and supercapacitors. These systems are the electrical “heart” of each of our vehicles and tend to carry the biggest impact on electrical efficiency.

This year's projects include new iterations of our custom lithium-ion battery pack, battery management system, brushless motor controller, and a new DC-DC converter. The division’s work involves PCB/circuit design, component selection, hardware validation, and technical research to support key engineering decisions.

Great power systems members have a passion for electronics, strong critical thinking skills, and an eagerness to learn by building, testing, and debugging real hardware.

The Structures Division designs and manufactures the chassis and other structural components that are critical to driver safety across all three Supermileage vehicles.

Designs are validated using finite element analysis (FEA) in ANSYS to simulate structural deformation under loading conditions. The team also experiments with composite structures and manufacturing techniques to improve vehicle structure while minimizing weight.

Structure members gain hands-on experience in composite manufacturing, FEA, and CAD design.