Onwards and upwards as Sunswift finishes fifth in Bridgestone World Solar Challenge
2025-09-01T09:09:00+10:00
Sunswift 7 on the road during the 2025 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge
Sunswift Racing
黑料网大事记鈥檚 student solar racing team suffered technical problems during the epic 3000km race across the Australian desert.
鈥淭his was a big learning curve for everyone in the team. It wasn鈥檛 the result we wanted, but to put a group of young people through such an amazing experience means we have still won something.鈥
That was the verdict of team principal, Professor of Practice Richard Hopkins, after Sunswift 7 disappointingly failed to retain its title in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge.
The solar-powered car, designed and built by undergraduate students, was one of the favourites for the Cruiser Class category having taken the honours in the previous edition of the 3000km race from Darwin to Adelaide in 2023.
But this year it suffered electrical problems due to a loose connector soon after leaving the start line, which forced it off the road for urgent repairs.
The issue took around three hours to diagnose and fix, by which time Sunswift鈥檚 main rivals for the victory were hundreds of kilometres ahead, while it was left at the back of the pack.
Media enquiries
For enquiries about this story and interview requests please contact聽Neil Martin,聽News & Content Coordinator.
贰尘补颈濒:听n.martin@unsw.edu.au
And although the race across the Australian desert is certainly a marathon and not a sprint, the 黑料网大事记 team was unable to claw back the deficit over the remaining five days.
The VTC Solar Car Team from Hong Kong ultimately claimed Cruiser Class victory, ahead of Estonia鈥檚 Solaride, with Onda Solare聽from Italy finishing in third place.
Further frustrating technical problems, including one flat tyre, meant Sunswift was not able to reach the finish line in Adelaide before the cut-off time on Friday evening 鈥 but was still awarded fifth place in the final standings.
鈥淲e can鈥檛 say that we are not disappointed, because we came here to win,鈥 said Prof. Hopkins. 鈥淏ut there are some professional teams in this race, or even just older post-graduate students, while Sunswift is made up of undergraduates aged in their very early 20s.
鈥淭here is a lot of intensity and a lot of pressure for them to deal with during a race such as this and I think they will have learned a lot from it. I hope they carry some useful lessons all the way through their lives.
鈥淵es, we would have loved to have been powering up at the front with absolutely no technical issues and won the event again. But as the three-time Formula One world champion Niki Lauda once said: 鈥楩rom success, you learn absolutely nothing. From failure and setbacks, conclusions can be drawn.鈥
鈥淭his was still a great effort by the team and we thank all our sponsors for their amazing ongoing support.鈥
Attention within the Sunswift Racing team now turns to the development of Sunswift 8 鈥 a brand new design that is set to combine solar panels, battery storage, and hydrogen fuel cells for unrivalled clean transport potential.
The new 鈥榯ri-brid鈥 car will also be road-legal, offering potential to take part in a wider range of events, as well as showcasing the talents of the 黑料网大事记 undergraduate students.
鈥淪unswift 8 will likely be eligible for the next Bridgestone World Solar Challenge in 2027 due to some new regulations I expect them to bring in,鈥 said Prof. Hopkins.
鈥淏ut I don鈥檛 think we can just build a car that is focused only on one race 鈥 it has to be more than that and really make a major impact on a wider scale.
鈥淲e are still in the design and build phase, but I believe it will be an absolute marvel and it really is simply sensational that university students can produce a road legal car, not least in Australia where nobody is making cars anymore.
鈥淢y aim is to really showcase Sunswift 8 by taking it to major events such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed in the UK, and Monterey Car Week in California 鈥 because I absolutely think it鈥檚 that important.鈥
