The Universitas Indonesia (UI) Supermileage Vehicle (SMV) team took home three awards from the prestigious 2023 Energy Saving Car Contest (KMHE) organized by the Indonesian Talent Development Center for National Achievement Center (BPTI-Puspresnas) of the Ministry of Education and Culture. They brought two teams to appear in two main categories, consisting of 21 students from the Faculty of Engineering (FT). The SMV UI team competed in the 2023 KMHE competition under the guidance of two lecturers from the FTUI Mechanical Engineering Department, namely Dr-Ing. M. Adhitya and Dr-Ing. Ridho Irwansyah.
The Nakoela Honda Team won 1st place in the Gasoline Internal Combustion Motor Prototype (MPD) category with a car that can cover a distance of 1219.2 km on one liter of fuel. Meanwhile, the Sadewa Honda Team won 1st place in the Urban Concept MPD Gasoline category, which was able to reach the furthest distance of 539.18 km using one liter of gasoline. Apart from winning the main category, the Sadewa Honda Team won 1st place in the Eco Fun Race category.
General Manager of UI SMV, Yusuf Timothy Turnip, explained that at the KMHE 2023 event, the two UI SMV teams brought different designs in terms of propulsion. He said that Nakoela focused on developing cc engines, while Sadewa focused on updating transmission and propulsion to be more efficient and sustainable.
Meanwhile, Sadewa Honda Team Manager, Daffa Farhan Ahmad said, “Our vehicle’s very aerodynamic, light weight, low rolling resistance, fast car acceleration design, as well as minimal fuel use not only make the car efficient but also fast on the track. We use a low cc engine that has been researched and designed to achieve a high level of efficiency. The car body is also designed using carbon fiber material that is both strong and light.”
Daffa added that the Sadewa Honda Team’s vehicles also use tires with low rolling resistance which greatly reduces friction with the asphalt. Apart from that, the car’s electrical system is also designed effectively so that this vehicle can operate optimally.
Dean of FTUI, Prof. Dr. Heri Hermansyah, S.T., M.Eng., IPU., appreciated the work of FTUI students in producing this energy-saving vehicle design. “This competition is an opportunity to prepare student talents who are ready to innovate various future challenges, especially in terms of the automotive industry and renewable energy. Hopefully, this competition can be a reference for students to continue to grow their potential and creativity in applying their knowledge in the field of technology that is useful in society,” said Prof. Heri.
Twenty-one FTUI students who are members of the UI SMV team were Yusuf Timothy Turnip, Zahran Mizulya Kusmana, Arafa Maulana Abdillah, Irvian Zakky Marta, Naufal Azmi, Daffa Farhan Ahmad, Zharfan Rosyad, Mohamad Iqbal Risya, Timothy Jonathan Sirait, Haidar Satrio Wiboo, Fransiskus Xaverius Godwin Siringoringo, Rafael Sinema Hia, Abdullah Iman Ramadhan, Ahmad Fatih Faruqi, Haydar Mahdi Khalids Fill Ardh, Jericho Christian Marsangat Pohan, Marsya Renatha Bahasoean, Hailal Muhammad Prabaswara, Fadhal Pandya Faiz, Fathia Ainina Jasmine, and Taqiyya Najla Syarif.
KMHE 2023 was a competition to encourage innovation and the competitive spirit of Indonesian students in the field of energy-saving and sustainable automotive technology which took place from 28th of October to 2nd of November 2023 at the Ancol Carnival Area. There were several categories being competed, namely the Prototype category for Gasoline Combustion Engines, Diesel Combustion Engines, Ethanol Combustion Engines, Electric Motors and Urban Gasoline Combustion Engines, Diesel Combustion Engines, Ethanol Combustion Engines, Electric Motors. At the Eco Fun Race KMHE 2023 session, trials were also carried out on the use of two types of environmentally friendly biofuel, namely Biodiesel and Palm Gasoline (BenSa).
