Bridgestone World Solar Challenge 2013

On October 6, 2013, the world's most advanced solar cars will duke it out in a gruelling 3000km race that bisects Australia to see which solar car is the fastest and most efficient.

motoring.com.au will be there to follow the world-famous race, dubbed the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge, with daily updates on the web and via social media, as 40 teams from 23 countries vie for the crown of the world's most efficient solar-powered car.

Using the sun's radiation to propel ultra-light aerodynamic prototype cars down the Stuart Highway, the race starts in Darwin and winds its way south via Alice Springs to Port Augusta with the finish line in Adelaide.

Solar-powered cars from the Americas, Europe, Asia and of course Australia are competing in the biennial event, with 2009 and 2011 defending champions 'Tokai' from Japan the team to watch in 2013.

The aim of the race is simple - to promote research on solar technology and by extension zero emission, solar-powered cars that could one day enter series production.

There are other big players in the 40 cars competing, such as the high-profile Dutch teams Twente and Nuon Solar, and the impressively named Punch Power Train from Belgium could be a dark horse too.

The US teams have a strong chance to claim victory in the exhausting 3000km race, with American Solar Champions (University of Michigan) and Stanford University in the running. Team Arrow from Queensland and the University of Western Sydney's Solar Car will also be looking for top three finishes.

What makes the event interesting is that all teams in premier Challenger Class must stop driving at 5:00pm and have to set up camp on the side of the road, wherever that may be. But hopefully not on a termite mound...

With 40 teams competing, the result is an outback adventure that brings people from across the world together, allowing the best and brightest minds to mingle.

For the first time in the event's history, which started in 1987 as the brainchild of Danish-born adventurer Hans Tholstrup, three distinct classes have been introduced:

Challenger: Premier class, one exhaustive stage
Cruiser: Overnight charging of batteries permitted
Adventure: Amateur teams who want an adventure

The event is not without risk either. Long hours in tiny cramped cabins, often with little ventilation, make the event a test of man, not just machine. The solar cars are not slow either, and the high speeds carry an element of risk.

Before the 2013 event has even started, the only British team in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge, Cambridge University Eco Racing, crashed its car during testing. The female driver was not injured, but the car has sustained significant damage after attempting a turn at 85km/h. It flipped onto its side and tore away the body work; the car may not be ready for Sunday October 6.

Speed limits are 130km/h for most of the journey dropping to 110km/h in South Australia.

Stay tuned to motoring.com.au all week for updates and check out the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge Facebook and Bridgestone World Solar Challenge website in the meantime.

Competitors

Challenger Class

Anadolu Solar Team - WITHDRAWN
Blue Sky Solar Racing
Cambridge University Eco Racing
EAFIT-EPM Solar Car Team
Eco Solar Breizh - WITHDRAWN
Ecole de technologie superieure
Hachinohe Institute of Technology
Havin Solar Car - WITHDRAWN
ITS Solar Car Racing Team
ITU Solar Car Team
JU Solar Team
Kanazawa Institute of Technology YUMEKOBO
Kogakuin University Solar Vehicle Project
KUST (Kookmin University Solar car Team)
Nuon Solar Team
Onda Solare
Punch Powertrain Solar Team
Seraaj Solar Car Team - WITHDRAWN
Solar Energy Racers
Solar Team Twente
Stanford Solar Car Project
Sun Shuttle
SunSPEC
Team Arrow
Tokai University
Uludag University Mechanical Community - WITHDRAWN
UMPSolar
University of Michigan Solar Car Team
UWS Solar Car

Cruiser Class

Apollo Solar Car Team
Goko High School
Hochschule Bochum SolarCar Team
Solar Team Eindhoven
TAFE SA Solar Spirit
Team Okinawa - WITHDRAWN
University of Calgary Solar Car Team
University of Minnesota
University of Waikato / HybridAuto
UNSW Solar Racing Team - Sunswift

Adventure Class

Antakari
Aurora Vehicle Association
IVE Solar Car Team
KAIT WSC Project
Mississippi Choctaw High School
SIKAT Solar Philippines
Team Solaris