15 Solar Vehicle Maintenance

15.1 Maintenance

Vehicles can be repaired and maintained at any time during the day except when public or media events make it inappropriate, or during the impound. Any component of the solar car may be changed or repaired with the following restrictions.

15.2 Batteries

Cells, modules, or battery packs may not be replaced, removed, or modified for any reason other than malfunction or accident without the consent of the Event Director. Decisions to exchange all or part of a battery system must be communicated first to an event official who will record the exchange and penalty. The judge must observe the breaking of any battery seal, date, and initial the broken seal. The standard penalty for battery replacement is the percentage of modules replaced multiplied by 100 miles, up to the number of miles driven on the day the battery was replaced. The Event Director has the authority to impose further penalties if a team, in effecting a battery replacement or modification, has gained an unfair advantage over the other teams or has otherwise departed from the spirit of the competition.

Note: Section 32 provides exceptions to this rule specifically for the Electric-Solar Powered Car Division.