This weekend, the team ventured to Versailles to take part in the Versailles Christmas parade. It may be 70 degrees out right now, but we’re still getting into the Holiday spirit! Here’s the team lined up before the parade started.

The semester is coming to an end, so here’s a rounded-out status update:

• Gato IV is in its (hopefully) permanent condition. It’s been retired from racing, so it’s purpose now is to attend shows and sponsors. Everything is fully functioning and ready for display when it’s using the old Gato II battery pack.
• Design for our newest car is still moving along. Work is almost finished on the chassis, but we want to take our time to analyze everything properly and make sure the car is absolutely the way we want it.
• There is also work on the new top shell; however, it’s minimal because our efforts are being put into the chassis. First things first.
• Battery testing is fully underway. All of the testing rigs are built so that we are able to measure performance of each individual battery along with the reliability of the new BPS modules. This will enable us to rebuild a better-performing battery and more stable battery pack.

Enjoy the weather while it lasts and Happy Holidays from UK Solar Car Team!

A big thank you to Dr. Henninger and Dr. Ashley for taking over as our new faculty advisors! Also, a huge thanks to Dr. Stephens for being the advisor for the past 12 years. He has enabled us to do everything we’ve done and we appreciate his years of service.

Now that we have our advisors set, we’re ready to purchase parts and start as much building as we can once designs get finalized!

No worries, everyone! Design efforts at the UK Solar Car garage have not been nearly as lacking as these updates! A lot of work is being completed, meetings are being had, and shows are being attended. More pictures will come once we start actually building! We also don’t want to give away too many of our secrets

The Apple Press Event in San Francisco is only about 2 hours away where it is rumored they’ll reveal the new iPhone 5. Speaking of 5th revisions (even though iPhone5 will be the 6th), maybe they will make an announcement about the 5th UK solar car…

…Or maybe not.

But, in honor of this event, we’ll announce our updates:
-The latest battery pack is getting some very successful BPS tweaks along with a lot of thought about automated charge balancing.
-We’re close to making the purchase of our new solar cells, most likely from SUNPOWER. This will happen by the end of this month.
-Design officially starts Monday night at 7! We have some drawings and ideas, but official design decisions will be made.

Stay tuned for more!

Yesterday, the team visited Chick-fil-A at the Turfland Mall on Harrodsburg Road for a UK Pep Rally. The team will be visiting Chick-fil-A on Nicholasville Road Thurday the 6th from 5pm-7pm. Come grab a sandwich and see the car!

Our first kickoff meeting for new members is Monday, September 10th at the garage. As always, this event is sponsored by Chick-Fil-A!

Also, our design timeline is being set, along with brainstorming some ideas for changes to Gato V. Before long, we will be drawing CAD models and electrical schematics!

Hi, everyone. My name is Logan Wells. I am a junior studying Computer Engineering and the new team manager for the 2012-2013 school year. I have been on the team since August 2010 and am very excited as I take on this role to do what I can to move the team forward in as many ways as possible.

This year, we will be designing and building our latest solar vehicle, Gato del Sol V. I’ll try to keep everything updated as much as possible. For other updates, you can visit our Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, and Youtube pages by clicking on the square image links at the bottom of each page, or you can find the links here.

Enjoy!