The Dragon e6 student formula car made its debut at the Brno Exhibition Center after a ten-year hiatus

The TU Brno Racing team from Brno University of Technology unveiled its new electric race car, Dragon e6, in an unconventional setting at the Brno Exhibition Centre. The ceremonial rollout took place today, May 15, in the rotunda of Pavilion A. This year’s formula car was developed in temporary facilities, and the students had to manage the entire season without their own workshop, which is currently undergoing a major reconstruction into the BUT Student Centre. Despite this, the team managed to expand, redesign the powertrain system, and qualify for international competitions in the Czech Republic, Austria, and Croatia.

This season marks a major milestone for TU Brno Racing in many respects. The student team, composed mainly of students from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Communication, and the Faculty of Information Technology at BUT, has grown from around fifty to more than eighty active members within a single year. The growing team and the ambition to open the project more to the public led to the decision to move this year’s unveiling from the university campus to the Brno Exhibition Centre.

“We wanted to be closer to the public and also connect the rollout with other student teams from BUT. Teams such as YSpace, Chicken Wings, Pneuracer, and the student photography club Technika Brno also presented themselves at the exhibition grounds. We didn’t want the event to focus solely on the formula car, but also on student projects and the university as a whole,” said TU Brno Racing team leader Anna Piárová. Symbolically, the team returned to the exhibition centre after ten years. “Back then, Dragon 6 with a combustion engine was presented here. Now we have unveiled the electric formula car Dragon e6,” Piárová added.

A Formula Car Built from a Container

The new single-seater was developed under non-standard conditions. Throughout the entire season, the student team operated without its usual workshop, which is currently undergoing extensive modernization. Production therefore had to be relocated to temporary facilities at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. Specialized institutes also opened their workshops and laboratories to the young engineers so the team could successfully complete the season.

“We had to plan much more carefully and often worked during weekends. Instead of a grinding workshop, we used a borrowed storage container to manufacture composite molds. During preparations, we joked that we were building a formula car from a container,” Piárová said with a smile, adding that the solution ultimately proved very effective. According to her, the team managed all limitations better than expected.

The students should receive their new facilities as early as this autumn in the modern BUT Student Centre currently being built in place of the original workshop. The centre will provide facilities not only for the formula team but also for other student teams. It will include office and teaching spaces as well as a large workshop equipped with the necessary technology.

AI Helps, but Does Not Replace Humans

Although this season meant working in provisional conditions, the team still managed to further expand development and testing activities. A key focus of this year’s car is the continued development of the all-wheel-drive system, which the team introduced for the first time in last year’s Dragon e5. “This year we mainly focused on the reliability and refinement of the drivetrain system. Our main goal is to get the car on track as soon as possible and test it thoroughly before the races,” explained technical leader Lukáš Krátký, adding that the team qualified for Formula Student competitions in Austria, Croatia, and at the Czech autodrome in Most.

A significant portion of the work was completed even before this year’s monopost was finished. The students tested new converters, electronics, and control algorithms already during spring using last year’s Dragon e5. “We used the time when the monocoque and other mechanical parts were being manufactured, and we tested every electronic component intended for Dragon e6 in the old car,” added student Dan Šrámek, who is responsible for software and driverless technologies within the team. “The larger number of members also allowed us to focus not only on regular software maintenance but also on a major reorganization of the entire codebase. We now have a solid foundation and are focusing on maximizing the potential of the all-wheel-drive system,” Šrámek said.

The students also use artificial intelligence tools during development, mainly for code analysis and quick retrieval of technical data. According to team members, however, AI still remains primarily a support tool. “AI helps us identify inconsistencies or analyze parts of the code, but it’s definitely not the case that we simply input a task and receive a finished result. Our system is far too complex and still requires human decision-making and experience,” Šrámek added.

Besides software improvements, the students also focused on cooling system modifications and overall vehicle reliability. They drew on direct experience from last year’s races. “In Croatia we struggled with overheating of certain units, so this year we relocated them to cooler areas of the car,” Krátký explained. The August Alpe Adria competition in Croatia will show how successful the modifications were. Although the most significant changes happened inside the monopost, its appearance will also partially change. New competition regulations reduced the maximum height of aerodynamic elements, which required modifications to the aerodynamics of the entire vehicle.

Dragon e6 Full carbon monocoque Fischer Elektromotoren motors, 4x35 kW Planetary gearbox with a reduction ratio of 12.75:1 10’’ full carbon rims Roll-heave suspension system Wheel torque: 4x370 Nm Aerodynamic downforce: 768 N at 60 km/h Acceleration 0–100 km/h: 2.8 s Weight: 180 kg Maximum traction system voltage: 600.3 V

The total project budget this year amounts to approximately eight million Czech crowns. “Around half of the funding comes from the university and the faculty, while another part consists of financial contributions from partners. Material donations and software licenses that we can use free of charge also play an important role. Companies mainly see the project as an opportunity to cooperate with talented students who gain highly practical experience already during their studies,” Piárová said.

The team is also gradually preparing for a return to the autonomous Formula Student category. According to Šrámek, autonomous driving is technically and organizationally much more demanding than the electric formula car itself. The team is already working on autonomous driving development and implementation possibilities, but the students estimate its real deployment no sooner than the season after next.

The TU Brno Racing student team was founded at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at BUT in 2010. In 2021, the students ended the production of combustion-engine monoposts with the anniversary Dragon X model and simultaneously introduced their first electric formula car, Dragon e1. TU Brno Racing is the largest student team at BUT. This year, 85 students, mainly from FME, FEEC, and FIT, participated in the development, manufacturing, and operation of the team, with additional students joining from other BUT faculties and Masaryk University. More about the team at tubrnoracing.cz.

Source: Faculty of Mechanical Engineering

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Author	Mgr. Radka Španihelová
Published	2026-05-15 19:15
Link	https://www.vut.cz/en/but/f19528/d329681