Joshua Stout

CWRU Motorsports

Overview

I’m currently a part of the suspension division of CWRU Motorsports and I lead our team’s business presentation efforts. Each year we design and manufacture a single seat off-road race cars to compete in Baja SAE competitions against other universities. To learn more about the team, check out our website.

Projects

Vehicle Dynamics

Rear Geometry Design

  • Designed rear suspension geometry on SR25 (2025 vehicle)
  • Huge optimization problem with 10+ different variables effecting vehicle handling, obstacle performance, and efficiency
  • Iterated 14 times to reach final design
  • Worked across sub teams leads to ensure packaging requirements met

Vehicle Dynamics

Shock Absorber Simulation

  • Developed Matlab program to simulate shock behavior based on the force at the wheel
    • Used fluid mechanics and dynamics of the outboard system to develop this simulation
  • Informed real-world tune and allowed us to compete with an optimal tune without rebuilding shock absorbers

Part Design and Validation

Suspension Arm Design

  • I designed the front and rear suspension arms for SR24 (2024 season vehicle)
    • I also ran assembly level finite element analysis on SR25 (2025 season) suspension arms
  • This project was challenging since the suspension geometry required us to lengthen the front arms compared to last year which increased loading
  • To solve this problem, I utilized Finite Element Analysis (FEA) at both a part and assembly level to simulate the loads gathered from wheel force transducer testing
  • Using these simulations I was able to design gussets and tabs to support the arms in regions of high stress while keeping the arms as light as possible
  • Over 20+ hours of runtime (and a crash with another team) the suspension arms have experienced no critical failures
    • This helped lead to top 3 performances across dynamic events and a 6th place endurance finish with SR24.

Shock Rebuilding and Tuning

  • I rebuild and tune our shocks to ensure optimal performance across events
  • By tuning spring rates, ride heights, and damping profiles I ensure our car can optimally perform across each of the 5 dynamic events
  • On our latest car (SR25) the tuning process was aided by the shock absorber simulation I created, detailed above

Manufacturing

  • I do a variety of manufacturing for CWRU Motorsports ranging from turning simple lathe parts to bending clevises on a hydraulic press
  • By manufacturing a wide range of parts I’ve learned how to design for manufacturability and conversely how the process of manufacturing can impact the finish part