Since its founding in 2012, Bruin Formula Racing, or BFR, has been one of the top university formula racing teams in the world. BFR is a subsidiary of UCLA’s Bruin Racing organization that specializes in designing and building a car that adheres to a specific set of rules, called the “formula,” from scratch every year.
While originally founded as an internal combustion, or IC, team, after placing in the top 10 IC teams internationally, BFR has since shifted to an electric vehicle, or EV, team in pursuit of “something new, something challenging and something that really pushes us to our limits,” according to financial director Jenna Lacuata, a fourth-year mechanical engineering student.
BFR’s team didn’t miss a step with the transition, placing second among all first-year EV teams at their international competition. Since then, they’ve been working their way back up to the top spots as they passed every technical inspection this last year, 2025, a feat that only about one-third of teams pull off.
They accomplish their success by using a design and integration process similar to industry. “You start by defining your goals and requirements,” said Nandana Venkitesh, a third-year mechanical engineering student and co-lead of the powertrain subcommittee that works on the energy storage and distribution within the car. “And then it’s a process of research and thinking of ideas … and iterative testing.”
Throughout the summer, the team of over 600 students starts preparing for the upcoming year by dividing job assignments and planning as much as they possibly can. Each major part or type of part is assigned a responsible engineer who focuses almost exclusively on managing that task. Above each responsible engineer is the lead of one of 13 sub-teams who meets regularly with the club’s directors to determine the direction of the car and the club as a whole.
Their design process involves several rounds of development and integration. Once the engineers finish their designs, they coordinate with the subteam directors to implement all of the parts into a single, unified model in computer aided design, or CAD, software.
Throughout the fall, they work on finalizing their designs while onboarding new members. A key component of their onboarding is the new member project that each recruit receives. “This allows our new members to get hands-on experience where they have ownership over a certain part of the car,” Lacuata described. These projects can be either specific to a certain subteam or dynamic and work across subteams.
Recently, the club has expanded its educational opportunities for new members, especially with electrical engineering. This year, BFR is offering a more structured training curriculum that is open to all new members and can help those with any level of prior experience. “[Training] starts with the bare fundamentals,” said Venkitesh. “We basically just start by assuming that people know absolutely nothing.”
In the winter, after the new members have completed shop and safety training, the mechanical teams start machining their parts and tying it all together. “We produce as much as we can in-house, but sometimes we have to outsource parts,” added sponsorship chair Fiona Kuo, a second-year musicology and English student. BFR uses computer numerical control, or CNC, machines, lathes, 3D printers, vertical bandsaws and more to manufacture parts of the car according to their CAD models, and their goal is to produce a vehicle that they can begin testing in the spring.
Throughout the year, the financial committee works on the business side of formula racing. The sponsorship subcommittee works on conducting outreach to companies, private donors and alumni for funding. According to Kuo, they use a combination of emails to prior sponsors, application forms and cold emails to new contacts that membership requests to work with. They have automotive companies like Tesla as sponsors, but they also look for sponsorships that the community loves like Raising Cane’s and, prospectively, fragrance companies.
Their other responsibility is working on creating presentations around the business processes involved in formula racing. They take on research surrounding the industry to answer complex problems like detailing a full mass production process of the car that the engineering team builds. They also write a financial efficiency report that breaks down the individual costs of the car and justifies each piece.
New members in the financial committees also have new member projects. This year, their new member project was a mock presentation similar to the ones that BFS gives at the international competition. These were graded and given constructive comments based on depth and design. New members then decide on specific skills they want to improve, receiving education in areas like design, Blender and finance. “At the end of the day, we’re an organization that promotes learning,” added Kuo.
The other non-technical subteam is the equity, diversity and inclusion, or EDI, committee. This team is in charge of planning everything else within the club, from socials to collaborations.
“The EDI team holds socials about once a week,” said Kuo, speaking from her other role as the community growth chair. These socials range from their Halloween event to their annual trip to K1 Speed Indoor Go Karting, where they race to determine who will drive the BFR racecar in the spring competition. “I’ve made a lot of friends this quarter. I never feel like there’s a gap keeping us from being friends [at the socials],” said Kuo.
The BFR community is a great way to meet upperclassmen and graduate students. Different members go to every social event, so there are a variety of opportunities to meet new people, network and form friendships with members of other subteams. “Bruin Formula Racing is just as much about community as it is about engineering,” said Venkitesh.
The EDI team also manages collaborations with external organizations. A notable collaboration beloved by the team was Bruin Formula Racing x UCLA Frogs, a club that crochets frogs and hides them across campus for people to find. Collaborations like these not only help club growth and recruitment, but also with creating a wholesome community for the club.
In the spring, BFR puts the finishing touches on their car and starts testing it for the race. Subteams also frequently get lunch together to socialize as each member works hard to ensure that the car is race-ready.
The competitions involve several different rounds including inspections, presentations and the race itself. “They make us open up anything that might be dangerous,” said Venkitesh. The rigorous technical inspections happen before the team can race the car in the different events, the crowning jewel of which is the endurance competition, the most prestigious and highest-weighted competition.
Interested students are encouraged to apply no matter their year, major or experience. Lacuata offered herself as an example of how new members can be productive and valued members no matter their starting point: “I had no STEM experience coming into college. It’s not about coming in and just having a solution to every problem because not even the most experienced [members] have that.”
There isn’t an application — new members just have to complete a checklist, which includes attending four socials and several different specific training sessions. After completing the checklist, new members receive their BFR emails and are officially part of the club.
While it may be too late to join this year, recruitment happens every fall quarter for prospective members, and for people who want to support the club without committing to being a full member, the club is always looking for donations and collaborations.
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Featured Image Photographed by Siena Hunt/BruinLife
