Spark MK1
Our First Competition Car!
Spark Mk1:
Fall 2023-Fall 2024
Solar Array: 900w Sunpower Maxeon Gen III
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Battery: 4.6kWh Lithium-Ion
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Motor: Mitsuba M2096-DIII
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Frame: 4130 Chromoly Steel
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Weight: 411kg
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About Our Car:
Spark Mk1 is the Phoenix Racing Team's very first competition car. The car was designed in the Fall of 2023 to meet the regulations and standards provided by the American Solar Challenge. It was built in the Spring of 2024 with the goal of going to compete in the 2024 Formula Sun Grand Prix. Thanks to the many hours of dedication from our team and advisors the car was able to make it to the competition. While at the competition our team took 7th out of 24 teams on the track! Spark Mk1 was able to complete over 275 miles of total driving at the track!
Mark 1 History
August-December 2022
At the start of the 2023-2024 school year, our team began building the foundation for Spark Mk1. Our build and design teams started to design the major aspects of our car, such as the frame, suspension layout, and rough body layout. Every design had to adhere to the regulations provided by the American Solar Challenge. We had to make several design compromises in order to fit the criteria laid out to us. However, we were able to make a final design and were ready to start fabrication!
January-June 2024
Initial Steps
In the spring of 2024, we were ready to begin fabrication. Our frame was the first step towards getting the car done. Cut lists were made based on the finalized design of the frame, which allowed our team to start cutting and coping all the tubing members. With assistance from our Fabrication Specialist, we welded our frame and suspension using TIG welding, which allowed for the cleanest welds we could get. Our suspension was designed with cutouts of quarter-inch metal for tab mounts, motor mount, custom steering knuckles, and more. We used a plasma cutter on these components to save time fabricating. To check for fitment, we 3D printed the designs of our steering knuckles and made modifications as necessary.
January-May 2024
Electrical
We started to receive our electrical components while building the mechanical aspects of Spark Mk1. Our Mitsuba motor was then mounted to a test stand, and we completed a test run to understand how the motor operated. Our array arrived from SBM Solar, and the panels were each individually tested to verify our outputs from each panel.
May-June 2024
System Integration
During the integration and testing of our electronics, we worked on the body of our car to ensure it was completed in time. Our body was built using kevlar, foam, epoxy, glass beads, and body filler. We first made our top body, which our array would mount to. This was vacuum bagged with the top surface of it face down to provide the flattest surface we could make. A mold was created for our canopy to be formed around and cured on. The side of our car was made with kevlar-wrapped ribs that allowed our body to come on and off the frame. The ribs were carved to the curvature of our design, which was used to form the outer "skin" of the car's body. At the completion of the body, we completed 14 miles of driving before having to get ready for FSGP.
July 2024
Competition!
After almost eleven months of designing and fabricating the Spark Mk1, the time had come to compete at the 2024 Formula Sun Grand Prix. We packed our car, tools, equipment, and supplies for our 12-hour road trip to the National Corvette Museum Motorsports park. Upon our arrival, we checked in and unpacked into our garage bay. While there, we went through scrutineering to test and ensure our car was able to meet regulations and be safe to drive on the track. During the days we were completing scrutineering, our Electrical team and Electrical Advisor worked day and night to make our BMU start communicating again. Unfortunately, it was found that our BMU became a paperweight through an electrical fault. On the second to last day of scrutineering, we found a team that used the same Battery Management as us, so two of our advisors went 400 miles to pick up a spare BMU that the team had at their shop!​ After the arrival of our advisors with the spare BMU, we were finally able to get greenlit on all of our systems! We worked swiftly to get out on the track and we were able to get our first few laps out on the track!
