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From then on, packages and deliveries arrived daily
from around the world with parts for the racing car,
which meant that work on building the bodywork and
frame could begin in the workshop. The students weld‑
ed, polished and laminated day and night, although
they were not able to produce all the parts in their own
workshop. Complex elements such as the gearbox
housing were manufactured with the support of the HF
MIXING GROUP. Once all the parts had been made,
work began on assembling them. This is when the rigor‑
ous planning and design phase really paid off: the
technical parts and bodywork fitted together perfectly
to form the s3-13e. Marla was finally presented in a roll-
out ceremony at the beginning of May.
At 220 kilos, the car was significantly lighter than its
predecessor, more powerful and better engineered in
many respects. The testing phase got underway. The
road safety centre in Olpe and Siegerland Airport near
the HF site in Freudenberg made their facilities available
for testing and tuning Marla and preparing the drivers.
The first success wasn’t long in coming: Marla sprinted
75 metres in under four seconds – a record!
However, some problems still had to be solved before
the Hockenheim race: the electrics were playing up.
There were communication difficulties between Marla’s
main control system and the engine – fatal for an elec-
tric racing car! The team frantically searched for the error
and it was found and rectified just before the start of the
race in Hockenheim while some of the team members
were presenting the business plan and cost report.
Once it had passed the technical acceptance test,
Marla was finally allowed on the racetrack – acceleration
its strength! Once again, it recorded an outstanding
time of less than four seconds, but the Speeding Scien-
tists were unfortunately soon stripped of this success,
because Marla’s power was above the prescribed thresh‑
old. According to the rules, this figure is 85 kW, but
Marla’s engine was delivering 99 kW. This mistake was
a result of the hectic rush of the previous few days: they
had clean forgotten to fit the electric restrictor. The car
was subsequently disqualified. A bitter disappointment!
Yet the season was not set to end there. Back in Siegen
the students readied Marla for its second appearance
in Spain at the Circuit de Catalunya. Errors were rec-
tified and the convoy set off for Spain at the end of
August. The hard work of the previous weeks was ack-
nowledged by the jury: there wasn’t the slightest objec-
tion and Marla was approved for all dynamic disciplines.
Even the static disciplines were successfully com‑
pleted: in the acceleration test Marla recorded an outstand‑
ing time of 3.97 seconds – this time without being dis-
qualified! The racing car also mastered the other
disciplines with no problems. The team from Siegen
found itself in sixth place at the end of the week – a
major success for everybody, which made up for the
failure in Hockenheim. The HF MIXING GROUP shares
the team’s delight and wishes them every success for
the 2014 season!
Tough competition in Formula SAE – the starting line-up
for the Hockenheim race in 2013.
On track: Marla in its element.
The 2013 season ended on a positive note with sixth position in Spain.
