Fueled by the Sun, Powered by the Mind

About Us

The University of Minnesota Solar Vehicle Project (UMNSVP) was founded by a group of ambitious undergraduate students in 1990. By 1993, our first solar car, Aurora I, was built. The team has built 15 vehicles in total. We are one of the most decorated teams in America, having raced in over 30 different solar challenges on 3 different continents. Our 14th car, Freya, is the winner of the 2022 American Solar Challenge MOV Class and our 15th car Gaia placed 2nd in the 2023 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. Read more about each of our cars here.

American Solar Challenge

In July 2022, the team took first place in the Multi-Occupant Vehicle Class at the American Solar Challenge. ASC was an eight day long race covering over 1,400 miles from Independence, MO to Twin Falls, ID.

Bridgestone World Solar Challenge

In October 2023, our team secured second place in the CSIRO Cruiser Class at the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge, matching the best performance by any American team in the competition’s history. The race spanned over 3,000 kilometers from Darwin to Adelaide. Additionally, we were awarded the Eberle-Selwood Arrow Cup, which recognizes our second-place finish and our first-place finish from the previous year. This achievement solidifies UMNSVP as the most consistently competitive and well-performing solar racing team globally for the 2022-2023 race cycle.

We have always aspired to keep innovation and learning at the forefront of what we do. The team has remained true to its original foundation as a student administered, designed, and built project that teaches members about engineering and management in a product development environment. In 2013, we were the first American team to compete in the Cruiser Class at the World Solar Challenge. The Cruiser Class is about more than just speed; competitors are also scored based off of how practical their car is. We were also the first team to race a multi-occupant vehicle at the American Solar Challenge.