Stevens Students Blaze Trails Offroad in SAE Baja Competition

Stevens Baja SAE members gain firsthand engineering experiences beyond the classroom

Sometimes the road less traveled is a muddy one. And that's what members of the Stevens SAE Baja prefer.

Over 12 months, Stevens students worked diligently on campus to build an off-road vehicle for the 2024 Baja SAE competition in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. This annual program, part of SAE International, an organization focused on advancing aerospace, commercial vehicle and automotive engineering, challenges engineering students to design and build vehicles capable of withstanding harsh terrains.

Members of the Stevens community offering support and guidance to the team included Paul McClelland, director of the Stevens MakerCenter, Elsayed Aziz, teaching associate professor of mechanical engineering and the faculty advisor of the club, and Bruce Fraser, assistant director of the Machine and Fabrication Shop.

This year, the team demonstrated significant improvements in both the car's design and team dynamics, passing the technical inspection on the first attempt - a major highlight that set a positive tone for the competition.

"This was a huge improvement from previous years," said Edward Pieluc '24, a mechanical engineering major and president of the Stevens Baja SAE club at the time of the competition. Incoming president Konrad Souser '26, also a mechanical engineering major, agreed, noting that passing the technical inspection on the first try and building one of the best-performing Baja cars Stevens has ever had were among their proudest achievements.

Overcoming rough terrain

Pieluc explained that time management was one of the biggest challenges the team faced. "In previous years, the team struggled to complete the car significantly before competition," resulting in limited testing time, according to Pieluc. "This year, the team established a more realistic timeline and goals, allowing for extensive testing before the competition."

Tyler Cuttitta '25, an electrical engineering major and treasurer, highlighted the difficulty of building the car in about 12 months with limited personnel. "The biggest issues we faced were when our front differential pinion was skipping and muddy paddock conditions at the competition." Despite these challenges, the team persevered.

Cuttitta, who participated in three competition seasons, emphasized the importance of learning from past experiences. "Having the experience of attending previous competitions has enabled us to be more prepared and organized when we get there," he noted.

"The car was functional the earliest in the year it has ever been since I have been here," Cuttitta said. This early functionality reduced the rush to finish everything in time and contributed to their successful tech inspection.

Souser added that designing over the summer and giving themselves more time to build the car throughout the year helped them find a better balance.

Competing members of Stevens SAE Baja together with Paul McClelland, director of the Stevens MakerCenter (fourth from left on the top row).

Balancing passion with time commitments

The Baja SAE competition offers practical applications crucial for developing well-rounded engineers, attracting many students.

For Alicia Kearney '26, a mechanical engineering major and corresponding secretary, her involvement with Baja SAE positively impacted her academic experience. "Due to my experience of being around the entire production process of building a car from scratch, I am able to approach any design challenges required in any engineering design classes I have taken so far with no fear," she said.

Pieluc explained that the mission of Baja SAE - to provide future engineers with hands-on learning experiences beyond the classroom - drew him in. "Everyone that participates in a SAE Collegiate design series competition gets to apply the knowledge they learn in the classroom to a real-world design challenge. That's what really drew me in," he said.

Cuttitta echoed this sentiment, highlighting his passion for technical challenges and motorsports. "I like the technical challenge, building things, and I also enjoy motorsports," he shared.

However, balancing the demands of the project with academic and personal responsibilities was a challenge. But the team embraced it.

"Most of the team members are friends with each other and enjoy the time they spend together working on this project," Pieluc said. This camaraderie created a support system amid time crunches between working on the project and balancing their academic responsibilities.

Souser noted that competing in the Baja SAE was an exhausting yet rewarding experience. "Stevens Baja made serious improvements from last year's competition. Improvements in the car and team dynamics. I think our biggest highlight was passing the technical inspection on our first go along with other highly accredited teams at the same time. That set the team morale in a positive way and the expectations for how well our car would perform on the track..."

Scaling to new heights next year and beyond

In this year's performance, Stevens Baja SAE placed in the top 25 in the acceleration event, which measures a vehicle's ability to quickly reach speed from a standing start over 100 or 150 feet. They also placed in the top 12 in the cost event, which estimates prototype cost and includes a written report on cost-saving measures in vehicle design.

The team placed in the top 50% in the hill climb event, which showcased their design's quality, matching or surpassing those from significantly larger schools. The hill climb challenges vehicles to climb an increasingly steep hill, with few teams making it to the top.

"This year the hill had a 40-degree incline at the very top, making this event much more challenging than in previous years," explained Pieluc. "Despite this, and the fact that our team had only designed for a 35-degree incline, we managed to make it almost to the top of the hill, stopping just 17 feet shy of the end of the track."

"From an engineering standpoint, doing well in this event means that we have the capability to not only do the physics to find the design parameters for the powertrain system, but also that we can apply our knowledge into the real world to create a real working engineering solution," explained Souser.

Kearney emphasized the team's pride in the hill climb performance. Adrien Susino '27, one of the drivers of car #30 made a remarkable second attempt that nearly reached the top, energizing the team. The hill climb event not only demonstrated the team's engineering prowess but their commitment to one another and their shared goals for next year.

Looking forward, the Stevens Baja team is eager to channel their experience into next year's competition, with plans to incorporate new technologies and dedicate more time to testing and data analysis. "For me, I'm looking forward to working with the rest of the team to continue this awesome project," Souser said, emphasizing his commitment to passing down his accumulated knowledge and experience to new members next year.

As part of inspiring new members and fostering a sense of camaraderie within the group, Kearney, who will take on additional roles as business team lead and suspension team co-lead, aims to promote a safe, comfortable place for anyone, ensuring everyone's voice is heard. "The main purpose of this club is to provide a valuable educational experience to anyone interested, above all else."

With the competition over, Pieluc, now in his fourth year competing in Baja SAE, reflected on the team's future. "We start over! The design process for the team's next car has already begun with a new high of 14 students collaborating every week."