Just days before the start of the race,
Resolution crashed during testing
Stewards scrutinised the damage to
Resolution at the roadside
The only British team to qualify for a
solar car race in Australia has been
forced to pull out after its vehicle
crashed just days before the start.
The Cambridge University Eco Racing
car, Resolution, was expected to take
part in the Bridgestone World Solar
Challenge, but crashed on Tuesday.
The team hoped to fix it before the
start, but withdrew on Saturday.
In a statement, the team said: "We have
not been able to reassure ourselves of
the safety of our solar drivers."
Resolution was one of 28 vehicles
entered in the Challenger category of
the 1,860-mile (3,000km), seven-day
race from Darwin to Adelaide which
started earlier.
'Rolled and skidded'
Built by a 60-strong team of students at
the university's engineering
department, the car weighs 265lb
(120kg) and is designed to run at an
average speed of 50mph (80km/h).
During testing prior to the race, the
team wrote on their blog: "The first
three hours of testing went exactly as
planned.
"Unfortunately, we also did one
unplanned test, of the structural
integrity of the chassis. We had an
accident."
The vehicle rolled on its side, skidded
along the road and slipped down an
embankment.
The driver walked away unhurt as the
roll cage and chassis stood up to the
impact.
However, the team said: "[The] solar
cells on the side of the door... do not
take kindly to being sanded by 50m of
rough tarmac.
"Large portions of the side panel cells
are now scattered in a thin, very
expensive layer over the surface of [the
road]."
The team added the car was "only
designed to withstand one such impact
- and as such needs to be repaired to
be fit for purpose".
Members were unable to make the
repairs in time for the start of the race.
A message on their website said: "The
team is very disappointed but we are
confident that we have made the right
decision."
Source : http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-24419452
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