For the fourth consecutive year, the student team from Széchenyi István University specializing in electric vehicle development triumphed with a world record at Europe’s largest energy efficiency competition. The SZEnergy Team outperformed the most prestigious higher education institutions of the continent.

The Shell Eco-marathon is one of the world’s premier energy efficiency competitions, where students from leading technical universities showcase their skills by designing and racing low-consumption vehicles. The SZEnergy Team from Széchenyi István University – celebrating its 20th anniversary this year – has long been a participant in the contest, and with impressive results. The team previously set world records in the electric vehicle category in 2022, 2023, and 2024, entering this year’s event in Poland as the defending champions. The competition was held at the Silesia Ring from 10 to 15 June.

Once again, victory returned to Győr. The team confidently secured first place, surpassing last year’s world record by improving the efficiency from 309 to 327 kilometres per kilowatt-hour. This means that the vehicle, named SZEmission, completed the set distance using so little energy that, if recalculated, it could travel 327 kilometres on just one kilowatt-hour — roughly equivalent to powering a 100-watt light bulb for ten hours. This achievement placed them 30 percent ahead of the teams from Çukurova University in Turkey and the University of Toulouse in France. The significance of this victory is further underscored by the fact that they also outperformed institutions such as Trier University in Germany, Politecnico di Milano in Italy, and the National Technical University of Athens in Greece.

The student team of Széchenyi István University celebrated joyfully at the awards ceremony (Photo: Balázs Miklós)

Behind this outstanding achievement lies the practice-oriented approach of Széchenyi István University and its innovation-supportive environment. For many years, the SZEnergy Team has benefitted from the strong support of the University, its Vehicle Industry Research Centre, and industrial partners, and they now work with increasingly professional resources.

Balázs Für, team leader of SZEnergy Team, expressed immense pride in the team’s performance. “On the first day, we achieved 299 kilometres per kilowatt hour in what we considered a safety run, focusing on reaching the finish line within the allotted time. On the second day, we encountered unexpected technical issues caused primarily by the unusually hot weather—conditions we had not been able to simulate during testing. Fortunately, we managed to resolve these issues and went on to achieve 318 kilometres per kilowatt-hour, followed by an impressive 327 on the final day,” he recalled. Für emphasised that the key to their success lay in the team’s thorough preparation, strong cohesion, and excellent team spirit. He also highlighted the invaluable contributions of the mentors and supporters—including the University and the Vehicle Industry Research Centre—who provided ideal conditions for both preparation and competition. Nearly thirty team members travelled to the event, where they faced the additional challenge of competing on the Silesia Ring in Poland, a circuit unfamiliar to them, instead of the well-known racetrack in Nogaro, France.

As the only Hungarian team in the competition, the SZEnergy vehicle proved by far the best (Photo: Balázs Miklós)

“The result exceeded the predictions based on previous simulations, indicating that our developments – such as the new electronic system and redesigned suspension – performed even better than expected. Our car doesn’t rely on a single outstanding feature; rather, every component is excellent, and together they work even better,” said Balázs Für. In conclusion, he emphasised that while they will first celebrate their victory, they will soon begin outlining the next steps for development. His final words were bad news for their rivals: “We have learned a great deal from this year’s competition, and our goal is to return next year with an even more formidable vehicle.”

Teams from Europe’s most prestigious universities competed in the challenge (Photo: Balázs Miklós)