Week 4

This week, the team made a huge advancement in the BAJA program by making  great deal with a  Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) supplier. A CVT is a very expensive piece that allows for the vehicle to change gears almost instantly without crashing or breaking down. The BAJA team agreed to give one of their old vehicles for a lifetime supply of CVTs. This deal will help ASU save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, in buying CVTs.

I was tasked with fixing up the car that the team was going to be giving to the CVT company. First we changed the breaking pads by replacing them with new and working brake pads. Brake pads are the main instrument used in braking a car because they help clamp on to the wheel and stop it from moving. Next I had to bleed the brake fluid to make sure the brakes were working properly and that there were no air bubbles caught in the brake lines. First we loosen the the brake fluid bleeder screw found at the wheel cylinder at the end of the car. Next we pump the brakes until the brake fluid that is leaking out has no air bubbles. We will know this because the brake fluid will be shooting in solid streams instead of spitting out. We re-attached the wheels and the car was ready for the company.

Week 3

This week was a very light week. The team didn't have much work for us to do so they sent us to the sandblasting machine. This machine uses high-pressured air to remove the sand and rust that covers the metal parts on the old BAJA cars. The team likes the sand blast machine because it allows them to reuse the parts from previous cars which allows them to not waste money and time on making new parts for the car. These parts are being used for the new car which is looking better and better everyday. The team has put on the suspension and tires to the new car as well as adding seat belts and brake pedals that will fit the driver of the car.

Week 2

This week we had to make the front bumper using a one inch pipe. We first had to cut the pipe to make it approximately 15 inches using a machine called a Bandsaw. The bandsaw is very self-explanatory, it uses a high-powered saw to cut through metal. However it uses a liquid called coolant to make it easy for the saw to cut through the metal as well as preventing the machine from overheating. Next we had to take the 15 inch pipe and give it softer edges since the bandsaw leaves the pipe with very rough edges. We had to use a coping machine in order to smooth out the ends. The coping machine uses a high-powered end to cut through the pipe and make it smoother. Next the pipe must be bent in the shape of the front bumper. BAJA SAE regulation requires that the bumper have two and a half inches of space between the bumper and the front of the car. To bend the pipe we used a pipe bending machine that let us bend the ends of the pipe where we would weld the pipe to the front of the car. Finally the welder on the BAJA team came and welded the bumper to the car using a tack weld to hold it in place and then if the bumper is straight and meets all standards, the team wills fully weld it on to the car.

Week 1

In my first week at BAJA, I have begun to learn the many machines and parts that will be used to build the vehicle. So far the team has constructed the skeleton of the car and is in the process of constructing parts for the vehicle. I learned how to create plastic bushings for the car using a machine called a lathe. This machine helps cut the hard plastic rods that we use for the bushings with near perfect precision. The plastic bushings will be placed on the car for a short period of time as a prototype until new metal bushings can be made using the lathe. The plastic bushings are good to have so that the team can continue to work on the car without having to work around the metal bushings and the team must use metal bushings because the plastic bushings begin to expand and malfunction when there is water or high temperature around. These bushings will be used in holding the front and rear suspension to the car and making sure that there is enough space for everything to work properly.