MIT Solar Electric Vehicle Team to Unveil the Manta GTX

BOSTON, Massachusetts -- The MIT Solar Electric Vehicle Team today will unveil its newest car, the Manta GTX. The unveiling will take place today on the MIT campus at 3 p.m. in front of the Kresege Auditorium.

The new Manta GTX, the successor to the Manta GT, is built on the basic Manta GT model but is more aerodynamic and lighter in weight. The team will use this vehicle to participate in the biggest solar electric vehicle race in the world, the World Solar Challenge (WSC), a 3000 km race across the Australian Continent.

Major sponsors for this project include: MIT, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, SunCat Solar and Tanya Christine Sienko.

The MIT Solar Electric Vehicle Team is a student organization dedicated to educating students about solar electric vehicle design and construction by providing a hands-on environment in which students are encouraged to apply theories learned in the classroom.

The SEVT is a recognized student organization at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology working under the auspices of the Edgerton Center. The team draws on a broad range of technical knowledge encompassing all fields of engineering and science. Team membership provides an intense educational experience, which teaches practical skills impossible to communicate in the classroom environment, turning students into engineers. In addition to providing real-world design and manufacturing experience, involvement in the team develops project management and business skills. The team also gives students the opportunity to work closely with professors and members of the business community, including those on the board of consultants, when developing the vehicles.