This summer, UTM’s first Formula Student car made its competition debut. The team took part in two international events in Romania, giving UTM students their first experience of Formula Student competition.
The first stop was Formula Student Balkans, held from 12 to 17 July 2026 at the T&T Karting Transylvania Circuit in Dej. In August, the team moved on to Formula Student Romania at the Speed Park circuit in Bacău.
UTM was represented by a six-member team:
- Nicolai Tuluș, team captain, Faculty of Mechanical, Industrial and Transport Engineering;
- Ecaterina Andrusceac, Tamara Matorina and Dumitru Bulat, Faculty of Mechanical, Industrial and Transport Engineering;
- Victor Pislari, Faculty of Computers, Informatics and Microelectronics;
- Daria Proscurina, Faculty of Design.
Getting to the starting line meant months of work on the team’s first car, as students took their ideas from the drawing board through to testing. The competitions were the first chance to put that work in front of international judges.
At both competitions, the team took part in the static events: Engineering Design, the Business Plan Presentation and the Cost Report, where students presented the car’s technical solutions and the business model behind the project. The car also went through Technical Inspection, where judges checked its construction, safety and compliance with the competition rules. The team didn’t make it through to the dynamic events this time, but the inspection showed the students exactly where the car needs work and gave them a clear idea of what to focus on next.
This experience taught us a huge amount and answered questions we could never have figured out on our own. Some of the toughest parts were presenting and defending our technical solutions, the calculations and documentation, the technical inspection and pitching our business plan. Both competitions were an emotional rollercoaster, from the events themselves to our conversations with the judges and other teams. We've come back with a lot of experience and plenty of plans for next season.
Events like these are also a place to learn from others. Students get to compare approaches and see cars that have already been proven on track. The UTM team made the most of it, visiting other teams’ pits to take a closer look at their designs and ways of working.
Formula Student is multidisciplinary by nature. Every stage calls for technical decisions, teamwork and the ability to present the project convincingly. It gives students a chance to put what they’ve learned into practice in conditions close to those they’ll face in industry.
With Romania behind them, the team is now focused on what comes next: continuing to develop and refine the car and preparing for future Formula Student competitions.
For UTM, projects like this take engineering out of the lab and give students the kind of hands-on experience industry is looking for.
The team’s participation was supported by UTM Driving School, Porsche Center Moldova, FabLab Chișinău, Driven Wrap and ABT Moldova.
