Another major challenge the new program faced was attracting the right students. In Fall 1996, Gomez and Metzloff introduced West's chemistry students to materials science by inviting chemistry classes to conduct heat treatment experiments. Using electron microscopes and hardness testers from UW, students learned that chemical reactions can be seen in solids as well as in liquids and that these tech ed courses were different. The winner of the competition is the team that designs and builds a single passenger vehicle that goes the farthest on a single gallon of gas. By brainstorming as a large group and then breaking into smaller teams to tackle specific design issues, every student gets to be a part of the design process.
Many teams design and build vehicles, but never go through the engineering process formally.
By January, students are actually building and testing their car for the state competition in April. The vehicle's top speed is 56 mph. In addition to the technical support offered by the various UW CoE departments, building a competition car requires a significant amount of fundraising. Donations of money and materials come from all over the U.S., including Wisconsin, Texas, South Carolina, Illinois, Michigan, Oregon, California and Pennsylvania. The relationship gives students access to specialized equipment and expertise beyond the high school classroom.