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how difficult is it to build a race car?
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4 answers
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Rich’s Answer
Very hard. Building a race car takes a team with years of expertise in numerous technical disciplines, large amounts of money, and access to modern assembly and testing facilities. The best way to learn is to pick a specialty (engines, suspension, aerodynamics, electronic control systems, tires, etc), learn as much as you can through training and experience, and then get on a racing team sweeping the floors if that is the only thing available to start the real learning. A good first step would also be to build your own go cart to learn the basics of how a cars systems work together Good Luck!
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Soumya’s Answer
Building a race car is indeed challenging! That is why, most race-car building efforts require a team to start with. The team typically gets built with individuals from various backgrounds and complementary skills. As an example, you need people who are very good with computer-driven skills alongside individuals who want to build cars hands-on.
Now, assembling the team is itself a huge step and being a part of universities/accredited institutions is crucial. After the team building phase, you require basic resources: access to computers and relevant software, access to tools. Typically corporate sponsors help a great deal. Finally, depending on the stage and experience of the team, you would require a technical experienced advisor. In summary, investment of time and money with a solid backing from the institution are critical to get a race car built!
Now, assembling the team is itself a huge step and being a part of universities/accredited institutions is crucial. After the team building phase, you require basic resources: access to computers and relevant software, access to tools. Typically corporate sponsors help a great deal. Finally, depending on the stage and experience of the team, you would require a technical experienced advisor. In summary, investment of time and money with a solid backing from the institution are critical to get a race car built!
Updated
Alex’s Answer
It depends on what kind of race car you want to build, what your skill level is and how much money you'll be able to invest in the project. My advice is to work everything out on paper first before you spend any money.
What is your experience? Will you need people to help you? If so, what is their experience level? How much will they charge? What type of racing are you looking to participate in? How will you maintain the vehicle? Where will you store the vehicle? Are you able to transport the vehicle?
And many many more.
What is your experience? Will you need people to help you? If so, what is their experience level? How much will they charge? What type of racing are you looking to participate in? How will you maintain the vehicle? Where will you store the vehicle? Are you able to transport the vehicle?
And many many more.
Updated
Tyler’s Answer
It is very difficult to build a race car, mostly because of the expenses associated with it. Like Alex pointed out, it depends on the type of racing, but there are so many components and subsystems working within a car and each of them have to be tweaked for maximum performance. That includes the aerodynamics, suspension, engine power mapping, tires, transmission gear ratios, and so much more. It is a lot of trial and error to figure out what the best setup is for your goal. That's what makes it so difficult and expensive. If you are interested in engineering for a race team, I would suggest looking into Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI for short). That is where I went to school, and they offer a Motorsports Engineering degree path. It overlaps quite a bit with mechanical engineering courses, but specializes certain courses like Vehicle Dynamics for people that want a career in racing. You could also double major in both because they overlap so much.