Without a manual or a set answer, students in Korea University’s Formula racing club Eoulsure set out every year to build a racing car from the ground up. They study design programs, vehi-cle dynamics, circuits and control theory, machine frames and components and complete every-thing from the battery pack to the high-voltage electrical system with their own hands. Eoulsure brings together technology and passion to build one electric Formula racing car over the course of a year. We take a look back at Eoulsure’s most recent summer, when its members forged strong bonds through trial and error and countless nights of work.

Q1. What first motivated you to join the student Formula racing club? Were you already inter-ested in cars, motorsports, or engineering?

Minseong: Ever since I was young, it was a dream of mine to build a car myself. The idea of building a racing car based on engineering design was genuinely thrilling. I felt that this was where I belonged.
Hyeokgyu: I have always been passionate about motorsports. Even when I was studying for the CSAT in my senior year of high school, I never missed watching Formula 1 (F1).
Yeongdae: At first, I joined because I wanted to get closer to my classmates. After watching Eoulsure’s summer competition, I thought that I would like to take part in a big project like that myself.
Taehyeon: When I first heard about a student Formula racing club, I assumed we would be as-sembling something like a small RC car. But seeing students design a racing car that they could actually drive themselves and operate equipment such as grinders and welding machines made me excited about the possibility of having a completely different kind of university experience.

Q2. Could you tell us about Eoulsure’s unique culture of collaboration and approach to prob-lem-solving?

Minseong: Our club identity comes from the word eoul, taken from eoullida, meaning “to come together and become one.” Building a racing car over the course of a year requires a tremen-dous amount of study and time. During the school break, when we work intensively on the car, we see our teammates from early morning until late at night. Once a demanding project is over, we really become like family. Things that would have been impossible alone became possible because we did them together as a team. One of the greatest benefits of the project is gaining close friends who share our passion.
Hyeokgyu: We do not select new members based on a single interview. We evaluate their partic-ipation and commitment during the summer vacation and then decide who will become full members. This naturally creates a culture in which everyone works toward the same goal. When it comes to problem-solving, our ability to improvise is one of our strengths. Unlike an F1 team, we cannot afford to store a large supply of expensive spare parts. I remember the summer com-petition in Yeonggwang, Jeonnam, where we brought only the parts we absolutely needed and each team member quickly and successfully repaired the components they were responsible for.

Q3. Do you directly seek sponsorships and collaborations with various companies?

Minseong: We needed approximately KRW 40 million just to build this year’s car, so we formed an External Relations Team and began seeking corporate sponsorships. We prepared materials and visited industry exhibitions and related companies, proposing opportunities to promote their brands through workwear, the vehicle exterior, and SNS content. We even traveled to Busan to give presentations in hopes of receiving support for battery cells and welding equipment. After countless rejections, we received approximately KRW 45 million in support from around 30 companies this year, including in-kind contributions. We recently launched a YouTube channel to share our manufacturing process.

Q4. Could you tell us about your most memorable situation?

Taehyeon: When I was a first-year student, I was assigned welding work on the actual competi-tion car for the first time at a competition. I was so nervous that I failed to finish the work properly, and the part I had welded came apart during inspection. I blamed myself completely, but rather than blaming me, my senior pointed out what I had done well and encouraged me. I devoted myself to practicing welding so that I would not repeat the mistake, and now I am rec-ognized as the best welder in the club.
Hyeokgyu: Eight days before the 2023 competition, we had a major problem with the battery. I vividly remember working with Byeonggyu, who was the Electrical Systems Team Leader at the time, sleeping only two or three hours a day for a week as we worked to solve the problem. I was not in charge of the battery, but I volunteered to join because I was determined to finish the car. It was the only time in my life that I got so little sleep.

Eoulsure
Today

One Racing Car Built by 43 Students

Forty-three students from various majors, including the Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Electrical Engineering, and School of Smart Mobility, spent this year researching, de-signing, and building a high-voltage electric Formula racing car.

Coordinated Collaboration Across 12 Specialized Vehicle Components

Led by the President and Vice President, the club consists of the Chassis, Electrical Systems, Aero, and External Relations teams. Twelve specialized components of the car, including the frame, braking, suspension, battery box, controls, and circuits, work together.

First Challenge: A 300 V-Class Vehicle and Aero Parts

This year, the team increased the vehicle voltage from the existing 120 V class to the 300 V class and introduced new aero parts using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis and carbon materials.

Collaboration with Approximately 30 Companies

Through industry exhibitions and corporate meetings, the team secured approximately KRW 45 million in support from around 30 companies, including in-kind contributions. Recently, it also launched the club's first YouTube channel to share its manufacturing process and team activities.

2026 Goals

The team aims to pass all of the safety regulations established by Formula Student Korea (FSK), complete the most demanding event, the Endurance race, and win an award.

Q5. What ability do you feel you have developed the most?

Hyeokgyu: The ability to trust my teammates. In E-Formula, it is impossible for one person to understand every component perfectly. A car can only be completed when each person carries their assigned task through to the end and trusts that their teammates will do the same. I used to have a strong tendency to handle everything myself, but I have now naturally learned how to collaborate based on trust.

Q6. At the 2025 FSK competition, the club made history by passing multiple inspections for the first time. What was the atmosphere like at the event?

Minseong: It was a highly demanding competition, with only three of the 55 participating teams managing to complete it. For the first time in the club's history, Eoulsure passed five of the sev-en inspection items: the battery box, vehicle safety, electrical safety, tilting, and rain tests. Alt-hough we were unable to participate in the dynamic events, I think the know-how we accumu-lated through trial and error became a stepping stone for an even greater leap this year. I can still vividly remember the younger members bursting into tears when the car they had spent a year growing attached to failed to run and was eliminated during the final inspection.
Hyeokgyu: I was serving in the military at the time. As a KATUSA soldier, I was allowed to car-ry my phone even during training. Whenever I received news that we had passed another in-spection, I prayed repeatedly in the direction of Yeonggwang, where the competition was being held. I was deeply disappointed when I heard that we had failed the final inspection, but it was also the moment when my passion, which had briefly cooled, came alive again.

Q7. Has your experience at Eoulsure influenced your career path or dreams?

Hyeokgyu: It may not be an easy goal to achieve, but I have developed a dream of someday joining an F1 team in the UK and designing cars.
Taehyeon: By designing and installing aero parts on an actual vehicle, I became interested in analyzing and optimizing airflow. This led me to set a goal of becoming an engineer specializ-ing in CFD.
Yeongdae: I became interested in the vehicle's suspension. I found it appealing that the suspen-sion has a significant impact on vehicle performance, and I would like to design suspension sys-tems at an automotive company in the future.
Minseong: I have found it quite enjoyable to oversee a project. I am drawn to the process of connecting people and technology, coordinating different interests, and creating a completed result. I would like to become a project manager (PM) or a procurement specialist in the future.

Q8. What does Eoulsure mean to you?

Minseong: A record of my youth in my twenties, spent alongside my university friends.
Yeongdae: The beginning and end of my university life.
Hyeokgyu: A place where a car enthusiast develops into an engineering student.
Taehyeon: The paddock* of my life.

* Paddock: In motorsports, the space where team members stay together and prepare for a race.