Gwen is an Australian first and can reach 100 kmh in 3.5 seconds
ECU will take on more than 100 other Universities from across Europe this July at the international engineering competition, which is held at Silverstone, home to the British Grand Prix.
The competition is designed to test the team's design, manufacturing, management and business skills.
ECU Racing's (ECUR) new challenger is 'Gwen' - a hybrid that's been two years in the making.
"Gwen is an Australian first. We created a hybrid with an electric engine powering the front wheels, and a combustion engine powering the back ones," Engineer and Design Director Tarun Srinivas said.
The team is putting her through her paces at Perth Motorsport Complex to iron out any issues before the big event.
Since 2008, ECUR has been competing in the prestigious Formula Student UK as well as the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (FSAE) competition held in Australia every year.
"The students learn so much from these visits. They get to present and explain their work to the judges who have extensive engineering experience in design, manufacture, marketing and management," ECU Senior Lecturer Dr Nando Guzzomi said.
"They will return home with lots of new ideas for designing their next car."
The team admits it will be hard to improve on the success of their previous car, 'Wilson', which won Formula Student UK in 2024 as well as the Australian competition in 2023.
But they're confident 'Gwen's' aluminium core and carbon fibre chassis will make her lighter, quicker and more powerful.
"Gwen can reach 100 kmh in just 3.5 seconds and has a top speed of 115 kmh. She's one of the smallest cars in the competition, so she's nimble as anything." student Engineer and driver Cian Butler said.
Graduates of ECU's Racing course, the only one in Western Australia, have gone on to work professionally in the Formula 1 and V8 Supercar Championships.
Formula Student UK 2026 starts 15 July.
