Capstone Car Project
POSTED ON: Monday, September 29, 2025 12:00 PM by MC1 Sarah M. Thielen
Midshipmen at the U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) are gearing up for their capstone projects. For one team, that means building and modifying a car from the ground up.
Powered by a snowmobile engine, the ultimate goal for this team is a running vehicle that can hold its own when raced at the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (FSAE) competition in Michigan.
Hosted annually by SAE International, the Formula SAE competition brings together college teams from around the globe to design, manufacture and test a prototype race car. Entries are judged on design, performance, and presentation skills.
At USNA, this isn’t the first attempt at building a car for the FSAE competition. A variation of this project has consistently been a capstone for 20 first class midshipmen every year. The team is composed of varying majors including aerospace engineering, robotics and control engineering, electrical engineering and more, and underclassmen are welcome to help.
“The best Navy has done in competition was 40th place,” said Midshipman first class (senior) Patrick Melton, a mechanical engineering major who is the chief engineer on the team. “Our goal is to beat that as well as complete our capstone requirements.”
Melton added that changes the team has made this year have progressed the timeline compared to previous years.
“We are working on record keeping and being organized,” said Melton. “That’s going to make a big difference — not just for us, but for the next class of midshipmen who take this project on. Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Burnett, our officer rep (representative) has helped a lot with that.”
One reason for the team’s early momentum is the support from faculty and the surrounding Annapolis community. “The police department let us use their track space and gave us driving feedback,” said Midshipman first class (senior) Jackson Engels, a mechanical engineering major who is this year's team captain. “That kind of support is huge.”
Faculty from the Mechanical Engineering Department also work closely with the students as advisors and mentors, offering engineering expertise while empowering the team to lead the effort. Superintendent Lt. Gen. Michael Borgschulte took an opportunity to tour the Vehicle Dynamics lab to see the car for himself, providing the team mentorship and emphasizing the importance of technology and how it can apply to future warfighting applications.
“Help from the community is so important,” said Engels. “For some of the other schools competing, this is their main focus — their whole curriculum builds toward this project. For us, it’s part of a broader education. We’ll be heading into the fleet, not the auto industry.” Though these midshipmen won’t be designing cars after graduation, they say the hands-on experience they’re gaining is invaluable.
“The problem-solving and communication skills we’re learning are applicable everywhere,” said Melton. “We can’t take the feedback personally — we have to be constructive and grow along the way.”
As they move closer to competition day, the team is focused not only on building a race car, but also on building a foundation for those who follow. With improved documentation, community ties and hard-earned experience, they hope to cross the finish line faster than ever before.
Category: Midshipman, Research, General Interest, Academics, People