MCR MET Racing – Engineering Ambition on the Track

Designing. Building. Testing. Racing.

MCR MET Racing is Manchester Metropolitan University’s Formula Student team, bringing together students from engineering, business, marketing and more to take on one of the biggest challenges of their university experience: designing and building a single-seater race car from the ground up.

Simply Bearings is proud to support MCR MET Racing as the team turns classroom knowledge into real-world engineering.

Meet MCR Racing

Founded in 2007, MCR MET Racing allows students at Manchester Metropolitan University to put their skills into practice on a large-scale, real-world engineering project.Each year, the team is responsible for designing, manufacturing, developing, and testing a single-seater race car, with the ultimate goal of taking it to Formula Student UK.

But MCR MET Racing is about much more than building a car.

Students from different courses and disciplines work together across engineering, manufacturing, business, sponsorship, marketing and project management, gaining practical experience that goes far beyond the classroom.

The People Behind the Car

For MCR MET Racing, Formula Student isn't only about engineering.

It's also about the people.

Students from different courses and backgrounds come together through a shared interest in engineering and motorsport, working side by side throughout the year.

From long days in the workshop to late nights preparing for competitions, the experience creates friendships and memories alongside the technical skills gained along the way.

As experienced members graduate, knowledge is passed down to the next generation, allowing both the team and the car to continue developing year after year.

  • Putting the car to the test  

    MCR MET Racing undergoing the Formula Student tilt test as part of the competition's technical scrutineering process.

  • Hands-on Engineering 

    MCR MET Racing team members working together on the car during preparation and development.

  •  Ready For The Track 

    MCR MET Racing’s driver strapped into the Formula Student car as they prepare to put design, engineering and development into action.

From Design to Race Day

Building a Formula Student car requires hundreds of decisions, countless hours in the workshop and collaboration across multiple engineering areas. MCR MET Racing students gain hands-on experience across:

  • Chassis & Suspension - Developing the structure, suspension geometry and mechanical systems that underpin the car.
  • Powertrain - Working on the systems that turn power into performance on track. 
  • Vehicle Dynamics - Understanding and developing how the car accelerates, brakes, corners, and responds to the driver.
  • Electrical & Electronic Systems - Developing the electrical architecture and electronic systems required to operate and monitor the vehicle.
  • Aerodynamics - Exploring how airflow can be managed to improve the car's performance.
  • CAD & Engineering Design - Turning ideas into detailed designs ready for manufacture.
  • Manufacturing & Fabrication - Taking those designs from the computer screen into the workshop and producing real components.
  • Testing & Development - Finding out whether all that engineering works when the car finally hits the track.

Taking on Formula Student

The team works throughout the year towards Formula Student UK, where university teams come together to put their engineering skills to the test.

And it isn't simply about building the fastest car. Teams must demonstrate that they understand the complete engineering and development process behind their vehicle.

Static Events & Dynamic Events

Static Events

Before heading out on track, students must present and defend their work in front of industry professionals.This includes:

  • Engineering Design – explaining the engineering decisions behind the vehicle.
  • Cost & Manufacturing – demonstrating an understanding of how the car could be manufactured efficiently and economically.
  • Business Plan Presentation – developing and presenting a viable business case around their concept.

Dynamic Events

Then comes the part everyone has been working towards: seeing the car perform.

  • Acceleration – straight-line acceleration performance.
  • Skid Pad – testing cornering and vehicle dynamics.
  • Sprint – a timed event combining speed and handling.
  • Endurance – testing reliability and consistency over a longer distance.
  • Efficiency – assessing energy or fuel efficiency alongside performance.

A Milestone Season

The 2025/26 season represented an important step forward for MCR MET Racing. The team successfully progressed through the majority of the competition's scrutineering requirements, which was the furthest the team had made through the scrutineering process in several years.

Getting a Formula Student car through scrutineering requires far more than simply having a completed vehicle. The car and its systems must demonstrate that they meet the competition's technical and safety requirements before being permitted to compete in the dynamic events.

For MCR MET Racing, the progress shows the work that went into designing, manufacturing and preparing the car throughout the year. It also gave the team valuable experience to take forward into its next build.

Engineering Beyond the Classroom

MCR MET Racing gives students the chance to experience working on a genuine engineering project. Designs need changing, parts need manufacturing, problems appear once something is assembled, testing doesn't always go to plan, and deadlines don't move just because the car isn't quite ready.

This process of designing, building, testing, learning and improving gives students experience they can't get from textbooks alone.

Simply Bearings & MCR MET Racing

We’re proud to stand alongside MCR MET Racing as one of the team’s industry partners, supporting the students as they turn ambitious engineering ideas into a competition-ready Formula Student car.

Taking a car from concept to the track demands much more than a great design. It requires the right components, materials, technical resources and determination to keep designing, building, testing and improving.

Simply Bearings is proud to support MCR MET Racing with engineering components used in the development and preparation of their Formula Student car, helping the team put their knowledge into practice in a real-world engineering environment. But for us, this partnership is about more than supplying parts for a race car.

It’s about supporting the next generation of engineers as they gain hands-on experience in design, manufacturing, teamwork and problem-solving, skills that will stay with them long after university. Seeing our components become part of a project that gives students this kind of practical experience is exactly why we value partnerships like this.

We’re excited to follow MCR MET Racing’s journey, watch the car continue to evolve and see where the skills and experience gained along the way take the team next.

Proud to support the people behind the engineering. Good luck, MCR MET Racing; we’ll be cheering you on! 🏁

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