UNM students in the Mechanical Engineering Department’s Formula Society of Automotive Engineers race car design class are showing fifth graders at Monte Vista Elementary how to build balloon‐powered toy cars. The goal is to use an engineering problem‐solving process to respond to a request from a fictitious toy company.

Students will create an appealing toy that travels far, carries weight or goes fast. Fifth‐graders will demonstrate their working model, present test data, and explain why they designed the car the way they did during their final class, Tuesday, March 20, at 12:45 p.m. at Monte Vista Elementary in building P‐6.

The class used a process employed by engineers in design teams and taught at many engineering schools. Student teams explored the principles of jet propulsion, friction and air resistance, and experimented with different chassis designs and nozzle sizes to determine their effect on the balloon‐car performance. Certificates of achievement will be given to those teams who most closely meet requirements.

Last week, Monte Vista students visited the mechanical engineering laboratories, where they learned how UNM students develop, design, test, analyze and then drive a formula‐style race car. UNM participates in an international competition every year and students have finished as high as 14^th in a field of 140.

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