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UT's Longhorn Racing shows off its cars to NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick

kevin lyttle
·4 min read
NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick sits in a race car designed and built by Longhorn Racing, a group of about 300 students at the University of Texas who work on combustion, solar and electric car programs. Reddick was in Austin last week ahead of his title defense in the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas.
NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick sits in a race car designed and built by Longhorn Racing, a group of about 300 students at the University of Texas who work on combustion, solar and electric car programs. Reddick was in Austin last week ahead of his title defense in the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas.

As NASCAR pulls in this week for its annual Austin stop, race organizers are shining a spotlight on a vibrant yet unsung part of the local motorsports scene.

Longhorn Racing consists of more than 300 students at the University of Texas who use their creative skills to work on combustion, solar and electric car programs. Right in the heart of Elon Musk's Tesla country. Who knew?

"We're basically sleep-deprived engineers," said Fatima Sanchez, public relations officer of Longhorn Racing. "No one is paying us. We're passionate about the project. We design and manufacture the cars with the goal of getting them out in a year."

Trying out a new kind of car

Last week, NASCAR sent Tyler Reddick, one of its young stars, to the UT Engineering and Teaching Center, where some of Longhorn Racing's cars were on display. Reddick, driver of the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota Camry, said he was impressed with what he saw.

"These kids are resourceful. They're coming up with fascinating ideas to get more performance out of their cars," said Reddick, the defending race champ of the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. "They're getting into autocross, and they have full-blown underbody effects on these cars. It's so great to have a conversation with them. These students are really smart, and they're learning a lot about motorsports. They are advancing the cause."

Holding the flag, from left, are Longhorn Racing Vice President Navya Agrawal, NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick and Longhorn Racing public relations officer Fatima Sanchez at the UT Engineering and Teaching Center on Thursday. Some of Longhorn Racing's cars were on display.
Holding the flag, from left, are Longhorn Racing Vice President Navya Agrawal, NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick and Longhorn Racing public relations officer Fatima Sanchez at the UT Engineering and Teaching Center on Thursday. Some of Longhorn Racing's cars were on display.

Longhorn Racing doesn't actually run the cars in races but competes against 140 teams in the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers in front of design judges. It does have driver development programs.

"We take them to competitions over the summer where they are rated by industry professionals," Sanchez said. "We also get to test them in what we call dynamic events, the racing aspect of the organization. It's where they test our acceleration and endurance."

Navya Agrawal, LHR vice president, said the under-the-radar group has existed since the 1980s when Dr. Ron Matthews founded it.

"This was a great opportunity to spread the word with NASCAR and have Tyler answer our questions and inspect our work," Agrawal said. "We showed him our setup, how we start from the ground floor, welding our frame, our jigging process and how we get to the finished product."

Bryan Hammond, NASCAR at COTA executive director, gave the Longhorn Racing delegation tickets to race weekend here.

"It's been really cool to see how this student-run organization completely builds a brand-new car every year for competition," Hammond said.

Even though NASCAR Cup Series driver Tyler Reddick, one of the racing circuit's rising young stars, got a kick out of sitting behind the wheel of some Longhorn Racing solar cars, it doesn't mean he's interested in leaving stock cars. "I imagine it would be a wild ride," he said. "I've got enough to handle with my own car."
Even though NASCAR Cup Series driver Tyler Reddick, one of the racing circuit's rising young stars, got a kick out of sitting behind the wheel of some Longhorn Racing solar cars, it doesn't mean he's interested in leaving stock cars. "I imagine it would be a wild ride," he said. "I've got enough to handle with my own car."

The future of Formula E racing

Reddick said NASCAR has started to experimentally dabble in electric cars. For open-wheel racing, the Formula E racers can hit speeds approaching those of Formula One. Solar cars are much slower, at their best more like you might see on MoPac. Solar cars weigh around 700 pounds without the driver, and combustion and electric cars are about 480 pounds. Formula E cars are 1,675 pounds, and F1 cars are 1,759.

Will Formula E pop up on the Circuit of the Americas schedule?

"Sure, I think that day is coming with the growing popularity of EVs," COTA Chairman Bobby Epstein told the American-Statesman last fall. "Look around you, Elon's plant is just around the corner from us."

Reddick, who drives a Toyota Supra off the track, hopped into the Longhorn Racing demonstration cars with a smile on his face. It's almost like a go-kart compared with the 3,200-pound beasts he steers on Sundays.

"I imagine it would be a wild ride," he said. "I've got enough to handle with my own car. Did you see last year's race here?"

(It took three overtime finishes to decide it, with Reddick fending off Kyle Busch, Alex Bowman and Ross Chastain.)

"Three OTs? Felt like 10," Reddick said. "That was a mess. I wrecked out after the race. There always seems to be a bit of chaos at COTA. And I love it."

Longhorn Racing students will be watching.

"We've had a presence at F1 before," Agrawal said. "Now it will be interesting to see the NASCAR operation and how the racing is different."

Next weekend's racing

Friday-Sunday: Practice, qualifying and racing at Circuit of the Americas. Weekend passes from $79 (grounds) to $220 (main grandstand club seats). Friday only, $25; Saturday only, $30-$90; Sunday only, $70-$185. TV: Saturday on FS1, Sunday on Fox.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick learns from Longhorn Racing at Texas