College of Engineering, Pune takes 2015 Baja crown

Last year’s Baja SAE runners up College of Engineering, Pune(COEP) went one better this time around, securing the overall title with relative ease on the outskirts of Indore on Sunday.

DY Patil College of Engineering brought more delight for Pune by finishing second while VIT University, Vellore completed the podium.

Baja gives aspiring automobile engineerings a chance to showcase their practical skills by designing buggies from scratch around a standard 10 bhp single-cylinder engine.

Reliability is the prime focus as the buggies have to last for four hours as part of an endurance run. During this, the nominated drivers from each team have to go through all sorts of terrains - from water stretches to bone dry sand - before crossing the chequered flag. Stroking heat in broad daylight added to their misery.

The teams are also awarded points on the basis of a string of Static and Dynamic tests. COEP - the team who took the overall win - came second in three of the Static tests but fared far better in the dynamic ones with four victories(Acceleration, Hill Climb, ‘Raftar’, and Endurance/Durability) to their name

The concept of Baja originated in the US in 1976 and was brought to India three decades later. In its eighth Indian edition, the organisers were keen on hosting the event according to international standards with a course that was ‘10 times tougher’ than the previous one.

In addition, the organisers added an electric race to be in line with title sponsor Mahindra’s Formula E efforts. A separate course was erected next to the main site for the eBaja competitors.