Chassis Monocoque Layup

Cal Poly Racing Formula SAE is unique since it is one of only a few teams who manufacture a carbon fiber monocoque for our chassis instead of a steel tube structure. The layup process for these chassis is very long and everyone has to be very meticulous to ensure the chassis comes out as intended. It's also a very high-stakes part of the year since we get most, if not all, of our carbon fiber donated, meaning we don't have extra materials or time to make another chassis if the first one doesn't come out quite right.

Each layup process starts with cutting all of the different panel shapes out of rolls of prepreg carbon fiber. Then, depending on how many people are helping with the layup, there's a couple full days until the chassis is ready to pop out of the molds. After that, it's lots of post-processing to trim and seal the edges, sand down the carbon, cut all necessary holes, pot (epoxy) in all of the bolt inserts, and finally: paint/wrap.

January 2024

The design of this chassis was brand new for the 2023-24 season since a few people on the team made the chassis mold redesign their senior project. This involved optimizing the chassis to carry a larger battery pack, and accommodate the new Multimatic decoupled dampers.

January 2023