(Direct Dimensions Inc.: Owings Mills, MD) -- Every year a select group of students in the mechanical engineering program in the A. James Clark School of Engineering at University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland, compete in the Formula SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) competition. The FSAE competition requires the team of students to design, build, and race their own open cockpit race car.

The University of Maryland team, called Terps Racing, consistently finishes in the top 10 against 80 to 120 other school programs annually. Aiming for a first-place finish in the upcoming races, the team is experimenting with a new engine design.

The small autocross cars, usually weighing between 300 and 500 pounds, typically run on modified motorcycle engines. But Terps Racing is experimenting with using a snowmobile engine for the upcoming 2011 races.

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