[RS Design Spark] Imperial Formula Racing Achieves Best-Ever Finish at Formula Student 2025

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Imperial Formula Racing is a flagship interdisciplinary teaching endeavour of Imperial College London, celebrating our 25th year anniversary. We take part in the Formula Student UK Competition, which involves students designing, manufacturing, testing and racing a high-performance vehicle. In doing so, engineers get involved in designing every aspect of a formula-style race car whilst also developing teamwork and project management skills.  

We operate under a hierarchical structure with the Team Principal and Technical Director at the top, the team leads below who oversee the main systems of the car. Departments are further broken down into specialised sub-departments, which allow for effective communication between members, Team Leads, the Technical Director and the Team Principal. The team has experienced rapid growth between 2022-23 and 2024-25, becoming Imperial College’s largest student project with 200 members, including volunteers, some of whom work on more than one department. Our members represent 15 different course backgrounds within the university. The team comprises individuals from various academic levels, including undergraduates, master's and PhD students. We take pride in our 20% female membership, aligning with course demographics, and our commitment to diversity is further evident with 60% of Imperial's international students. 

Having faced recurring issues associated with developing an EV in-house, Imperial Formula Racing had previously been unable to compete in dynamic events for 13 years. Thus, the primary objective for the 2024-2025 season was to complete endurance with a return to an internal combustion vehicle. We are incredibly proud to share that the team successfully achieved this goal and surpassed expectations, finishing 4th in endurance, and 6th overall. 

After making the decision in Summer 2024 to switch powertrain choice to internal combustion in search of Imperial’s first running Formula Student car in over a decade, we were left with a spaceframe designed for an EV and a suspension setup in need of a revamp. The team faced a monumental task to design, build and test a car to fulfil the goal of finishing endurance at FSUK 2025. 

The goals for the season were set out early: compete in dynamic events and finish endurance. The team’s operational and engineering strategy was designed with this goal in mind. A team-wide design philosophy was established, focusing on three areas: reliability, weight saving and cost effectiveness. Designing for reliability would give us the best possible chance of completing endurance, the most highly weighted event. It is clear that for success at competition, reliability is the most important factor. Furthermore, the nature of the tight and twisting FSUK circuit inherently means that the single best predictor of lap time is weight. Finally, as a low-budget team (initial annual budget of £15,000 including competition and logistics fees), cost effectiveness was imperative for the team, and the budget had to be allocated and monitored carefully.  

For the power unit, a 400cc parallel twin engine (Kawasaki Ninja 400) was selected in favour of higher capacity options, which have become popular within Formula Student teams, with an overall lighter package possible due to the smaller engine. The presence of the 19 mm restrictor also meant that intake flow would not be choked to the extent of larger engines. The Ninja 400 engine was mounted and positioned into the spaceframe, with the rear section of the chassis reimagined through structural chassis design and FEA. This provided a blank canvas on which to design. 

By November, designs for IFR-01’s key systems were finalised, and manufacturing began. A week of welding at the Imperial College Advanced Hackspace completed the chassis assembly, enabling the first full vehicle build in January. The first engine fire-up took place later that month. 

Throughout the design and assembly process, Imperial Formula Racing benefited from the use of many parts from RS. Below is a list of some of the parts used for the IFR-01, as well as many other connectors and fasteners used throughout the car.  

Part Name	Quantity	RS Stock No.	Use
RS PRO Silicone Flexible Tubing	1	(273-2508)	Expansion tank to radiator coolant line
RS PRO Double Pole Double Throw (DPDT) Latching Push Button Switch	1	(745-2442)	Brake overtravel switch
M10 x 1.5 Female Steel Rod End	1	(198-8973)	Shifter Rod End
Double Universal Joint with Plain Bearing	1	(790-6769)	Used in connection with the steering shaft
RS PRO Angle Bracket	1	(767-5566)	Used to provide constraints in the battery enclosure
RS PRO Red Indicator	1	(123-2424)	Threshold (THD) Indicator
RS PRO Green Indicator	1	(123-2428)	Shutdown Chain (SDC) Indicator
Fluro M10 x 1.5 Male Galvanised Steel Rod End	8	(185-2849)	Rod ends for the lower wishbones
LDK M5 Female Carbon Steel Rod End	2	(185-2500)	Rod end for clutch sensor linkage

Throughout this process, it was of utmost priority to ensure that all designs were compliant with the Formula Student UK rules, as failing to do so would mean that the team would not pass scrutineering and not participate in dynamic events. Prior to the 2025 season, Imperial Formula Student teams had not fully passed scrutineering in over a decade, therefore it was difficult to draw upon previous knowledge and experience of the process, with just a short mock run of mechanical scrutineering at FSUK 2024 being the only experience to point to. With this in mind, it was important for the team to have a thorough knowledge of the rules, with the design of IFR-01 reflecting this. The team’s hard work and preparation for scrutineering paid off at competition, with IFR being the first and only team to fully pass scrutineering on Day 1.

With the goal of building a reliable car, testing was identified early as a key strategy. The aim from the outset was to have the first complete build in January, allowing several months for track development before FSUK. After initial dyno and low-speed tests confirmed all major systems were operational, the team moved into a structured track testing programme. 

The first test took place in February and quickly highlighted key issues. Drivetrain tolerance problems were uncovered that limited running and required remanufacture of affected components. Bodywork failures also occurred under dynamic loading, leading to a redesign and reinforcement ahead of the next outing. Despite the limited mileage, these early findings proved critical in shaping the next phase of development. 

The second test in March saw major improvements. Covering around 60 km with nine different drivers, the day was used to gradually ramp up intensity while collecting feedback on handling and performance. The redesigned bodywork performed reliably, and setup adjustments based on driver feedback improved overall drivability. Very few issues arose, suggesting the solutions from the first test had been effective. 

The third and final pre-competition test was more eventful. In the first half of the day, the intake plenum failed due to heat-induced deformation, brake bias proved difficult to balance, and fluid leaks were discovered in the braking system. These setbacks were documented and used to guide subsequent redesigns and repairs. In the second half of the day, the car ran faultlessly, completing a full mock endurance run of approximately 60 km. This brought the total track testing mileage to over 120 km for the season, providing confidence in IFR-01’s reliability heading into FSUK. 

The biggest lesson learnt from the 2025 season was that reliability is the single most important factor for scoring highly at Formula Student – reinforcing our initial belief. While IFR-01 was competitive in sprint, acceleration, and skid pad, its standout result was 4th place in endurance — the highest-value event — largely due to a season-long focus on durability and thorough testing. The car weighed 220.5 kg at competition, and with optimisation of the current chassis and powertrain package, a target weight near 200 kg is achievable in the near future, offering clear lap time benefits. For future seasons, the priority should remain on maintaining reliability while pursuing weight reduction, ensuring performance gains do not come at the expense of finishing endurance.