Centaurus, the University of Minnesota Solar Vehicle ProjectâÄôs current car, won the 2009 Formula Sun Grand Prix in Cresson, Texas yesterday, completing 487 laps and a total of 974 miles. The Grand Prix ran from June 3-5, and 17 of the 40 University of Minnesota team members attended. Centaurus can reach 80 mph, but it averaged a racing speed of 50 mph on the track, crew chief Adem Rudin said. The team that completes the highest number of laps over the three days won, but speed is not the only important factor. âÄúItâÄôs all about reliability, the only thing that matters is to keep driving,âÄù said Matt Crane, one of the teamâÄôs three drivers at the Formula Sun Grand Prix. Rudin said many of the cars with the fastest times only spent a few hours on the racetrack, due to overheating or other malfunctions. Centaurus is the UniversityâÄôs eighth generation solar car. The previous two cars, Borealis II and III, won the Formula Sun Grand Prix as well. âÄúOf course we wanted to win, but one of our main goals was to train the people who were new to the team, âÄúCrane said. âÄúOf our 17 person team, we only have three members who have ever raced a car before, everyone else is new,âÄù Rudin said. The team is also busy working on a new car, which Rudin said is âÄústill on the drawing board.âÄù Rudin hopes both the team and the new car will be ready for the North American Solar Challenge in June 2010. The Solar Challenge is the culmination of a two-year work cycle, where teams drive 2,400 miles from Dallas, Texas to Calgary, Alberta. In the meantime, the team is working 90 hours a week, said team member Adam Shea. He said the time commitment will shrink to 30 hours a week after school starts.