QWhat led you to join the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge (BWSC)¹ in the first place?

A

Kim Min KyuThis was my second time participating. In my first attempt, in 2023, our team was so underprepared that we couldn’t even make it to the starting line. We just watched other university teams finish the race. It dented our pride and fired us up to take on the challenge again. When I was recruiting teammates to join the race, I brought up the story of the Antarctic expedition. I told them, “It’s not going to be easy; some of us might even have to take a leave of absence to fully commit. But if we pull it off, we will have an unparalleled experience.” Once we had the team together, we turned to Professor Kwak Seung Yeop in Materials Science and Engineering. I said, “I would like to channel the experience from this competition to realize my dream of building a Ferrari in Korea.” He lit up at these words and offered his full endorsement.

QStudents from mechanical engineering, physics and astronomy, electrical and computer engineering, and even liberal studies joined the team. How did you structure the roles in the team?

A

Shin Ye HwanYou need exceptionally wide-ranging knowledge and skills to build a car. We had around 20 members, and we structured the team into four main groups. Min Kyu and Kyung Woon, both mechanical engineering majors, led the mechanical work, and a more senior student from the sculpture department, who has in-depth knowledge of material properties, handled composites. I’m in the liberal studies program, so I worked on operations. But the roles didn’t strictly align with our majors. Ji Won, a physics and astronomy major, joined the composite group and even took aerospace engineering courses to learn fluid dynamics. Everyone stepped up by learning what they needed to and adding value wherever possible. We all had different academic backgrounds and personalities, but the BWSC bound us tightly together as a single team.

¹ The BWSC is the world’s largest solar car race. It has been held once every two years in Australia since 1987. University teams from around the world travel approximately 3,000 kilometers across the Australian continent, over seven days, using only solar power with no external battery charging. In the 2025 race, 34 teams from 17 countries took part.

QYou only had about seven months to prepare, but your car became a talking point because of its distinctive design.

A

Kim Min Kyu As the team leader, safety was my top priority, so I initially focused on a protective design. But my teammates had different ideas. They wanted to build a car that would look just as impressive as those designed by top-tier teams. Their point was that, without a unique design, all the hours we invested wouldn’t feel worthwhile. Based on my experience in 2023, I knew that we were in for a difficult journey, but I decided to trust the team’s dedication and passion and follow their roadmap. The search for a distinctive design led us to a sleek, dolphin-inspired shape. The body stayed closed when driving straight and only opened partially when steering, a design that put energy efficiency before speed. To be officially recorded, we had to maintain above 60 km/h while the sun was up, so minimizing energy consumption was of utmost importance. Our extremely narrow front width caused the wheels to touch the body when steering, but we solved the problem mechanically using a chain. Even the international teams recognized it as an impressively clever solution. At that moment, I realized that the team had been right; it gave me the rare opportunity to reflect on the meaning of collaboration.

QYou not only designed the car but also built it, right?

A

So Ji WonWe received overwhelming support, but our budget was nowhere near that of overseas teams. So, we decided to build the car ourselves. I worked on the composites group, handling the mold and laying up the carbon sheets. To reduce production costs, I worked at a factory in Cheongju and received a discount on materials instead of wages. During the semester, I would head down there after my Thursday classes and return on Sunday evening. In January, I stayed there for the entire month. At one point, I even worked for 48 hours straight without sleeping. The entire experience was demanding, but I learned a lot while working with a more senior member from the sculpture department and another from the materials science and engineering department. And other members were no exception. Even while serving in the Korean Augmentation to the United States Army(KATUSA), Kyung Woon took leave on weekends every week to assume full responsibility for the brake system. When the vehicle body was finally finished, the sense of accomplishment that the team felt was indescribable.

QWhat was it like facing those overseas teams in person?

A

Shin Ye HwanWhat impressed me was the system adopted by the overseas teams; they seamlessly managed their parts and spare equipment in a 40-foot container. I also admired their proactive mindset in recruiting and training younger members beforehand. Moreover, they were technically skilled because they had actively pursued industry–academic collaborations. We received a great deal of support from them during our preparation phase. At the send-off ceremony, President Ryu Hong Lim personally encouraged every member of the team. And we certainly cannot forget the support we got from the College of Engineering. We were fully supported—everything from purchasing parts to administrative procedures. Several companies also partnered with us in meaningful ways. For example, researchers from Hyundai Motor held a seminar for our team, and Kolon Industries provided a composites training program. Some of our team members even participated in battery development as interns. This support gave us direct exposure to how companies conduct R&D and how we can collaborate with them.

QYou started the race with high hopes, but the car overturned 200 km before the finish. What was the first thing on your mind?

A

Kim Min KyuI hadn’t completely ruled out the possibility of the car overturning, but when it actually happened, it didn’t feel real. Cyclone-level winds of over 150 km per hour sent the car spinning two and a half times in the air. The safety officer even said that we could have been killed. Thankfully, when the driver walked out with only a slight nosebleed, we breathed a heavy sigh of relief. We were disappointed that we couldn’t finish, but all of us learned to accept nature’s power as part of the BWSC. In other words, life brims with uncertainties, so what truly matters is not giving up and being prepared to take on challenges together.

QWhat lessons did you take away from this challenge?

A

Kang Kyung WoonI had always dreamed of building cars since high school and had competed in the 2023 race with Minkyu. This time, I even saved up my vacation days to compete again. I wouldn’t have had the chance to build a car myself were it not for a competition like this, so I saw the immense potential in the experience. That said, I was glad to hear that more practice-oriented courses have recently been introduced. We hope our challenge will help usher in positive changes within the university.

So Ji WonI now have a clear goal. I once had a vague plan to pursue a master’s degree in physics. However, after working on composite materials and taking aerospace engineering courses, I decided to do a double major. Apart from allowing me to indulge in my interest and passion, making this choice opened an entirely new door for me and has been incredibly fulfilling.

Shin Ye HwanThis experience gave me confidence and filled me with a deep sense of achievement. We were behind other teams in both experience and budget, but realizing that we still performed better than expected made me proud. It dawned on me that earning a diploma is only the beginning. With this mindset, I hope to accelerate my growth by leveraging what I learn to seize opportunities. I intend to continue building my experience and skill set.

Kim Min KyuI developed a deeper interest in both cars and people. I realized that technical excellence is just the beginning and that designing a truly effective car requires understanding of who its users will be. To that end, the people who design cars also must understand people. I thus believe that engineers need practical, hands-on experience. Although I appreciate the direction the university is taking, there should also be space for students like me who wish to apply classroom learning to real-world projects. As I lead SNU Solar as an official SNU team, I’m eager to help pave the way for this kind of meaningful student engagement.