Students' Baja Racing team roars to series of victories | Cornell Chronicle

"Three first-place finishes may have earned the Baja Racing team the designation "Iron Team," but its members credit the students who came before them for their success. "We succeeded on the back of giants," said team leader Casey Savage '25, a mechanical engineering major in Cornell Engineering. "It's all a testament to how well we pass information down, and how much care is taken to build on the prior years." Maya Chakraborty '27, mechanical engineering major and 2025-26 drivetrain lead, makes adjustments to the previous season's car during a test run at the team's practice track."

"One of 36 Student Project Teams in Cornell Engineering, Baja Racing is a group of approximately 60 undergraduates who build an off-road car from the wheels up every year. They compete against other collegiate Baja teams in tests of speed, power, endurance and maneuverability. Judges also evaluate design and business presentations."

"Baja cars, look like souped-up dune buggies. They have to withstand rugged terrain, traveling over logs and boulders, through mud, and up and down steep hills on dirt tracks. All teams use the same engine, but students design and assemble the drivetrain, suspension, frame and brakes. At competitions, students fill all roles, from driver to pit crew."

Baja Racing is a Cornell Engineering Student Project Team of about 60 undergraduates who build an off‑road car from the wheels up each year. The cars compete in collegiate Baja events testing speed, power, endurance, and maneuverability, and judges evaluate design and business presentations. Last year's team earned first-place overall in Arizona, Maryland, and South Carolina, becoming Cornell's first Iron Team since 2014 after the prior year finished second. Students design and assemble drivetrain, suspension, frame, and brakes while all teams use the same engine, and cars must withstand rugged terrain. New members join as freshmen and sophomores and are integrated immediately by older team members, and leaders attribute success to careful information transfer and building on prior years.

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