Tshwane University Wins Sasol Solar Challenge

The student team becomes the first South African squad to take the Sasol Solar Challenge title, finishing more than 500km ahead of the field.

Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Motorsports

Tshwane University Wins Sasol Solar Challenge

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Tshwane University of Technology's solar car team won the Sasol Solar Challenge, the first South African team to do so. The eight-day race covered 3,000km from Sasolberg to Paarl, with 18 cars across three classes.

Why it matters

The win shows student-built solar vehicles can compete at a national level, and it comes after the team's car crashed into a ditch on day one two years earlier. The organisers are now opening the competition to other alternative energy sources such as hydrogen.

The team beat the rest of the 18-car field by more than 500km over the 3,000km route, which ran across eight days. The source does not give exact finishing times or the positions of other placed teams.

The players

Tshwane University of Technology

The South African university whose student team built the solar car and won the Sasol Solar Challenge.

Sasol

The South African energy and chemicals company that organises the Sasol Solar Challenge.

Ford South Africa

The local arm of the Ford Motor Company that supplied support vehicles and mentorship to the winning team.

Johannes De Vries

A team member who sold his caravan during Covid to help build the university's first solar car.

The details

Students harvested sunlight to power the car along the route from Sasolberg to Paarl via Kimberley, Clanwilliam and Franschhoek. Ford South Africa supplied a fleet of Tourneo support vehicles, which the students fitted with monitoring equipment, and the team visited Ford's Silverton plant. A misfiring LED indicator nearly stopped the car at scrutineering before the race began.

During the Covid period, team member Johannes De Vries sold his caravan to fund the university's first solar car.
Two years before the challenge, the Sunchaser 4 rolled into a ditch on day one.
The eight-day challenge ended with the Tshwane University of Technology team as winners.

Season Trajectory

The Sasol Solar Challenge has long been a South African showcase for solar-powered vehicles, and this first local win marks a new chapter in its history. Organisers are now broadening the competition to alternative energy sources such as hydrogen, which may shape future entries.

The result sets a new benchmark for South African entries in the Sasol Solar Challenge, and future teams will likely need to match the route strategy and vehicle reliability that carried this win. Fans following motorsports can track how alternative energy classes develop as the organisers widen eligibility.

The takeaway

Reliable engineering, careful route planning and strong partnerships with industry can turn a costly early setback into a national win. Student teams watching the Sasol Solar Challenge can see how persistence across seasons pays off.