June 13 Team Meeting

Brakes, Bagels, and a Better Steering Wheel

Some weeks on the solar car build, you’re solving big conceptual problems. Other weeks, you’re making three stops at AutoZone trying to find the right banjo bolt length. This was both kinds of week.

The Brake System is Done (Pending Two Bolts)

After months of designing, fabricating, and refabricating the dual front caliper brackets — and yes, we lost count of how many times we declared them “final” — the brake system is fully plumbed. Every line is routed, every fitting is torqued. Charles and Alex made the rounds at a few parts stores tracking down fittings, which is honestly one of the more real-world automotive experiences a high school student can have. The only thing standing between us and a complete brake system is a pair of shorter banjo bolts. We have committed to not calling anything “final” again until the car crosses the start line in Texas.

HV Components: Mounted and Organized

All high-voltage components are now mounted to a dedicated board positioned above the main battery pack. Having everything on a single serviceable board is a deliberate safety and logistics choice — cleaner wiring runs, easier inspection, and one fewer thing to improvise in the pit at Texas Motor Speedway. The HV system is starting to look like something you’d find in a real EV — because it is.

Cockpit Controls Take Shape

Remote contractor switches for the cockpit are installed, giving the driver clean, reliable control over key systems. Ryan printed a custom ABS enclosure on the H2C to house everything neatly — no zip ties, no rattling around. It’s the kind of detail that separates a prototype from a race car.

Speaking of the cockpit: students are actively designing a new steering wheel that integrates a 128×64 LCD screen and button inputs. The display will serve as the driver information and control interface — speed, power state, system status, and more, all at a glance. Watching students go from “what if the driver could see live data” to actually speccing out the hardware and UI layout is exactly what this program is about.

Strut Spacers: Now in ABS

The strut spacers have been reprinted in ABS. After earlier iterations in PLA showed their limits under heat and load, the ABS versions are significantly more appropriate for the underhood environment. The Bambu H2C continues to earn its place in the build.

Mr. Bowen Provided Critical Morale Support

Mr. Bowen brought bagels. Team consensus: this was a high-leverage intervention. Productivity metrics following bagel distribution were notably strong.

Twenty-nine days to departure. The car is coming together.