What is the EcoCAR EV Challenge?

The EcoCAR EV Challenge is at the cutting edge of automotive engineering education and challenges students to engineer a next generation battery electric vehicle (BEV) that utilizes automation and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) connectivity to implement energy efficient and customer-pleasing features, while meeting the decarbonization need of the automotive industry. 15 North American universities have been selected to compete in the EcoCAR EV Challenge.

UC Riverside has earned a spot as 1 of 15 Universities to participate in this prestigious series!

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), General Motors and MathWorks announced the 15 North American Universities and the 2023 Cadillac LYRIQ as the vehicle selected for the EcoCAR EV Challenge (2022-2026), the latest Advanced Vehicle Technology Competition (AVTC).  Managed by Argonne National Laboratory, the EcoCAR EV Challenge will be at the cutting edge of automotive engineering education, serving as a proving ground for future automotive engineers. The four-year competition will challenge students to engineer a next-generation battery electric vehicle (BEV) that deploys connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) features to implement energy efficient and customer-pleasing features, while meeting the decarbonization needs of the automotive industry.

UC Riverside was selected as one of 15 elite North American Universities to be part of this leading automotive engineering competition, empowering our students to become leaders and innovators by giving them industry-level experience in the most advanced automotive research and development. Our students will gain unparalleled hands-on experience in their desired field, exposure to career opportunities with our various sponsors, mentors, and even include EcoCAR tasks as part of their curriculum.

Our mission is to establish ourselves as a hub for automotive training in the Inland Empire, particularly for low-income and first-generation students. We're committed to investing in local education, promoting economic development, and fostering career opportunities, ensuring our community thrives in industry, academia, or government careers without the need to venture far from home. We strive to empower the next generation of leaders and innovators through hands-on experience in advanced automotive research and development.