Support our team as we design, build, and race!
Donate to support Anteater Formula Racing’s pursuit to competition and beyond! Join us in raising $20,000 for parts, tools, experience, and materials to build our cutting-edge 2025 Formula SAE race car. Propel us closer to victory on the international collegiate racetrack!
Who We Are
Here at AFR, our mission is to empower engineering students with real-world experience, equipping them with professional skills and practices essential for success in their future careers. Through hands-on involvement in designing, building, and optimizing Formula SAE race cars, students gain invaluable insight in all types of engineering. We are making sure that our engineers are learning the skills to tackle challenges they will face in industry, refine their problem-solving abilities, and hone their technical expertise beyond UC Irvine!
Anteater Formula Racing Team
The Competition
Formula SAE Michigan 2026 is an SAE Collegiate Design Series event that will feature student teams representing 75 universities across the world. FSAE competitions are overseen by a dedicated group of industry leaders and involve technical and safety inspections to ensure rules compliance for every system, presentation our team to display our designs with industry professions, and dynamic events in which our team will race our car for direct comparison is several performance categories: Acceleration, Skid Pad, Autocross, Endurance, and Efficiency.
Anteater Formula Racing is building an open-wheel, internal-combustion race car inspired by Formula 1 and IndyCar racing to compete at Formula SAE Michigan in May 2026. Our team of 59 dedicated engineering students participate in the design, manufacturing, and testing of our race car to gain engineering skills needed for an industry that is highly technical, fast-paced and competitive. The team collectively spends 10,000+ man hours each year developing our vehicle and various subsystems, alongside competitive engineering coursework. Anteater Formula Racing’s best finish in an FSAE competition is 19th at Formula SAE Lincoln, Nebraska!
2024-2025 Gastly at FSAE Michigan 2025
Building for the Future
In Anteater Formula Racing our engineering students are gaining invaluable life skills and career experiences across a diverse spread of industry, from automotive to aerospace, software, and business. Through Formula SAE, they develop hands-on training, communication, management, and design-to-reality opportunities – skillsets highly sought after by their future employers. Recognized as essential by industry experts, Formula SAE participation enhances any engineer’s resume. Discover more about Anteater Formula Racing’s Sub teams and their impactful roles in shaping tomorrow’s engineering leaders:
2024-2025 Master CAD rendering of Gastly the Race Car
Aerodynamics: Responsible for designing and optimizing the front and rear wings, bodywork, and diffuser to streamline airflow, minimize drag, and maximize downforce. Leveraging advanced fluid mechanics principles, the team conducts comprehensive computer flow simulations, wind tunnel tests, and on-track trials to validate and refine their designs. Their expertise and precision engineering make our race car perform at its peak, ensuring it handles like it's flying on the track.
Chassis: Responsible for designing and constructing the vehicle's frame, primarily using steel tubing. This frame must be robust enough to support the suspension forces, protect the driver in case of an impact, and serve as the structural foundation for all other vehicle subsystems, including the powertrain, electronics, and aerodynamics components.
Electronics: Designs, manufactures, and verifies the performance of onboard electronics, including the electronic dashboard, electronic throttle body, and various sensors which are vital for assessing our car's performance. The team also develops wiring harnesses that connect onboard data systems, such as engine management, to MoTeC digital displays. By gathering and analyzing data from numerous sensors, they ensure efficient performance monitoring and provide valuable insights for future improvements.
Human Interface: Designs, manufactures, and verifies the performance of the driver cockpit and all its instruments, including pedals, steering, gear shifting, brakes, and safety devices. They prioritize improving driver comfort and safety while optimizing vehicle performance. The team uses CAE software for precision engineering, ensuring components like brakes, shifters, steering wheels, and seat belts are designed for maximum efficiency and swift response. Their work ensures that every aspect of the cockpit enhances both the driver's comfort and the car's overall performance.
Suspension: Designs the suspension so the tires maintain contact with the ground while maximizing the overall grip and making sure the car is quick and easy to drive. Responsible for parts of vehicle dynamics, suspension kinematics, design of the wheel assemblies (hubs, uprights, wheels), control arms, shocks, and anti-roll bars. They are the joints that let our race car run!
Powertrain: Oversees the engine and all the external systems required to keep it alive. Designs and manufactures assemblies such as the exhaust system, cooling system, driveline components, and is responsible for the tune the engine runs on. Our goal is to make as much power as possible, as efficiently as possible without sacrificing reliability and keeping the design maintenance friendly.
Vehicle Dynamics: Develops and integrates real-time data acquisition systems on the car to better understand its on-track behavior and validate design decisions through physical testing. The team collects and analyzes track data to support other subteams and improve vehicle performance through direct feedback. In addition to hardware, the team builds MATLAB lap time simulations and other software-based vehicle applications to complement real-world testing. Their work is essential for optimizing the car’s performance and achieving maximum points in Formula SAE Dynamic Events.
Anteater Formula Racing Logo
THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO GET TO KNOW US A LITTLE BETTER AND FOR CONTRIBUTING TO OUR ENGINEERING DESIGN AND MANUFACTURING PROJECT.
EVERY DONATION COUNTS!
Contact Us
For inquiries about the project or more information, please email our Project Manager: Maia Bojorquez | mmbojorq@uci.edu
Learn more about our project by heading over to our AFR website and our Instagram.
$15
Pit Crew
Your donation fuels progress. Every bit drives us closer to victory, and you are directly contributing to vital tools, material, parts and the overall success of the team! Thank you for being a part of our journey, your belief in our team inspires us to create new limits and achieve greatness on the track.
$50
Wrench Turner
Your support means the world to us. We’re taking significant strides towards victory, and your donation enables us to get essential items such as hardware, drill bits, and angle grinder blades. Let’s race towards excellence together!
$100
Fabrication Fund
Without your generosity, our journey wouldn’t be possible. Your generous donation enables us to acquire important materials such as resin for carbon fiber layups and welding essentials like gas mixtures, welding wire, and safety gear!
$250
Machine Shop Champion
You shine as one of our most dedicated supporters! Your generous donation will cover expenses for laser cutting orders like brake rotors or contributing towards the cost of our times. Our race car wouldn’t run without your commitment to our team. Together we are now able to push boundaries and strive for victory on the track!
$500
Test & Tune
We are deeply grateful for your invaluable contribution. With you we can continue building and rigorously testing our car. Your donation covers items, such as wheels, which is an extremely crucial component for us. Thank you for believing in our vision and mission.
$1,000
Pole Position
Wow! You are monumental in crafting a winning car! A generous donation of this size would be transformative for our team covering expenses of tires, a professional engine tune, and travel expenses for key members to compete in our Michigan race! Your support not only fuels our journey but also strengthens our mission to excel.
$2,500
Race Ready
You have completely pivoted the production of our race car! With complex machining beyond our capabilities, a donation like yours enables us to outsource machining and purchase spare parts for testing or emergencies. Additionally, it could fund our long haul to Michigan and enhance our competitive edge.
$5,000
Grand Prix Circle
Your extraordinary generosity leaves us speechless! With your support, we can secure critical components like advanced suspension systems, precision-machined parts, and cutting-edge materials that elevate our car’s performance to a professional level. Furthermore, your contribution ensures we have the resources to travel, compete, and represent UC Irvine. Thank you for believing in our mission and helping us turn passion into excellence on and off the track.
