Students at the University of Michigan have designed and built a solar-powered car that will compete in the one-week-long 2013 World Solar Challenge this October. Although the Wolverine car, named the Generation, looks more like a dining table than it does a vehicle, the students are confident that it will perform well in the 1,800-mile race that traverses Australia.
Originally a three-wheeled electric car, the Generation had to be given a fourth wheel in order to meet the entry requirements of the World Solar Challenge. The students said that they had to reset where all four of the wheels went in order to maximize aerodynamics while also reducing the chance of kangaroo-related incidents.