a few questions

[Nathan M.]

I am very interested in the FSAE cars and all, but unfortunately have already graduated from college and am looking into building my own sort of FSAE car w/o the rules. I was wondering what to do on a few areas in terms of simplicity since i dont have a CNC available lol.

First is hubs. Is there a hub i can get off shelf that will do the necessary duties? Also rear axle design seems like it could be tricky. Has anyone tried a rear "pod" with a solid axle suspended off the main chassis, or will that caus chain binding/jumping problems?

Next seems to be steering. I see arguements for/against both rack and pinion and kart. Since i will not have rules to follow, any suggestions?

Also, Im not trying to steal anyones work, but any basic design dimensions and such would be a great help. I would be willing to purchase them at a fair price. you can pm me or email me at morrnat@buldog.mcpherson.edu.

Again I am just trying to make a fun fast four wheel kart style car in my garage and was looking for any help you can provide. Thank you.

Nathan Morris

[Nathan M.]

I am very interested in the FSAE cars and all, but unfortunately have already graduated from college and am looking into building my own sort of FSAE car w/o the rules. I was wondering what to do on a few areas in terms of simplicity since i dont have a CNC available lol.

First is hubs. Is there a hub i can get off shelf that will do the necessary duties? Also rear axle design seems like it could be tricky. Has anyone tried a rear "pod" with a solid axle suspended off the main chassis, or will that caus chain binding/jumping problems?

Next seems to be steering. I see arguements for/against both rack and pinion and kart. Since i will not have rules to follow, any suggestions?

Also, Im not trying to steal anyones work, but any basic design dimensions and such would be a great help. I would be willing to purchase them at a fair price. you can pm me or email me at morrnat@buldog.mcpherson.edu.

Again I am just trying to make a fun fast four wheel kart style car in my garage and was looking for any help you can provide. Thank you.

Nathan Morris

[exFSAE]

As far as I'm aware there are no off the shelf parts (or very few anyway) that are 'FSAE spec'. That said, in terms of uprights and hubs etc you could certainly use something from a Spec Racer Ford, CSR, DSR, whatever.. it would "do the job" but be very overbuilt and heavy.

With regard to steering, you could do a "kart" type arrangement with a near 1:1 ratio, but I would imagine it would be an absolute MONSTER to steer with these size tires.

Keep in mind, it takes a team of 5-15 people around 6-8 months of working up to 70 hours a week to get one of these cars designed and built. And that's with some years of previous experience, as well as full machine shop and welding access. Our budget to get the car made was about $20,000-$25,000 .. again with free machining and lots of sponsored parts. You could make one for cheaper, maybe in the $10,000-$15,000 range. Any cheaper and I think you're pushin it.

Be sure this is what you want to do. The alternative would be to buy a FF, FSCCA, F1000 or whatever car for the same or less. If you don't have a solid engineering and manufacturing background or LOTS of spare time and money that may be a better choice with better results.

[Nathan M.]

I understand the amount of work that is going to go into this, and that is no problem. I also am not worried about the money I "invest" into this project. I want something that I can build and call my own. As for the shop access, i have welder and some machine tools available to me. The biggest thing to overcome are the parts that i cannot maching myself such as the hubs i have seen and the amazing diff setups.

[Drew Price]

Nathan,

Look into what a lot of Baja teams use for uprights, spindles, and hubs. Items from Polaris for example are pretty easy to come by, and while you will not get to pick the geometry aside from what you can choose and modify, it will get you rolling.

Optimized geometry and weight are why most FSAE teams make their own.

We used dead spindles, front wheel bearings, and front wheel carriers from a Suzuki sport quad on our front suspension this year. They could have been lighter, but they worked great for our first car.

Best,
Drew

[Nathan M.]

thank you. information like that is priceless. If anyone has any informaiton like that on steering and/or a differential I think it might get me moving.

Also the offer still stands for any detailed plans anyone would be willing to sell. Even an old design will work, I am not looking for last years secrets. Thank you.

Nathan M.

[Buckingham]

If you think the differential is going to be a big problem considering your resources, don't use one. Once you have a working car, and have sorted out all of the "surprises", then go back and redesign the rear for a differential.

Chances are, you may be designing for more power than an FSAE diff/chain/cv/halfshaft was designed for anyway. No sense in buying some team's old diff only to hand grenade it the second you do your first burnout.