In a workshop in Ngong’, far from the polished garages of elite motorsport, a group of students gather around a steel frame. There is no roar of engines yet, no race-day spectacle, just sparks, sketches and determination. But what is taking shape carries the spirit of something far bigger. This is Strathmore Racing, a student-led engineering and motorsport team from Strathmore University made up primarily of Electrical Engineering students alongside members from other disciplines. United by a shared ambition, they are designing, building and eventually racing a single-seater electric Formula Student car. Their car, Mara, is not just a machine, it is a statement.

“Strathmore Racing is a team of students united by their passion for motorsport and electric mobility,” says Marybrenda Onsomu, the team captain. “We are on a mission to revolutionize the automotive and motorsport sector in Africa.”

The team

For many members, the fascination with motorsport began with watching Formula 1 and admiring the speed, precision and innovation behind it. But beyond the glamour, they discovered that racing is also one of the greatest testing grounds for automotive research and engineering.

That realization led them to Formula Student, a global competition where university teams design, build and race their own single-seater cars. Widely regarded as a training ground for future Formula 1 engineers and innovators, Formula Student offered Strathmore Racing an opportunity to join a global engineering conversation where Africa has often been underrepresented.

“This might look like just a race car,” Marybrenda explains, “but racing is the pinnacle of research in the automotive industry. What we are really doing is building students who know how to design and bring their ideas to life.”

At the center of the project is a diverse team, each member carrying a specific responsibility. Marybrenda leads partnerships, strategy and the overall vision of the team while Joseph Ng’era, the Powertrain Lead, is responsible for the systems that will power Mara.

Adau Monydhang’, the Mechanical Lead, oversees the structural and mechanical design of the car, while Titus Muli, the Low Voltage Lead, manages electrical subsystems and coordination within his unit. Alongside administration, fabrication and electronics teams, they function like the car itself, where every component depends on another.

The Prototype

“The chassis affects the electronics, the electronics affect the powertrain,” Marybrenda explains. “It only works because everyone understands their role is part of a bigger whole.”

The team realized they were doing something historic when they began searching for local references and found none.
“We started looking for partners and guidance and realized nobody in Kenya had done this before,” Marybrenda recalls. “We had to reach out to people in other countries.”

That absence of precedent became motivation. For Joseph, the reality of the project hit when fabrication began. “When I saw the frame taking shape, it hit me, we are actually doing this and setting the foundation for others,” he says.
For Adau, the project is also about challenging perceptions of African innovation. “Many people believe Africans can’t build anything and that we’re only good at assembly and repairs,” she says. “Building a Formula Student car changes that narrative.”

That belief inspired one of the team’s boldest decisions: building Mara using nearly 70 percent locally sourced African components, including second-hand parts where possible. “We are proving this can be done with what Africa already has,” Marybrenda says.

Although Strathmore does not have a Mechanical Engineering department, the team saw opportunity in their strengths. Since most members study Electrical Engineering, they chose to build an electric vehicle. “The competition was traditionally dominated by mechanical engineers,” Adau explains. “We leaned into what we knew best.”

The decision aligns with global conversations around sustainability and green technology. “The world is moving toward electric mobility,” Marybrenda says. “We didn’t want to be left behind.” Joseph agrees: “The earlier we understand this technology, the better prepared we are as engineers.”

The journey has not been smooth. In 2025, the team planned to compete in Formula Student UK and worked relentlessly toward that goal. But just one week before the competition, they realized they would not make it. “You could feel the frustration,” Titus recalls. “Nearly half the team left. It was a real blow,” Marybrenda adds.

But the setback became a turning point. The team learned the importance of planning better, working smarter and staying committed despite disappointment.  Behind every visible milestone is an invisible process of learning, failure and persistence. “It requires rigorous training and obsessive attention to detail,” Marybrenda says. Joseph puts it simply: “You must accept being terrible at something before you can become good at it.”
Their days are filled with welding, redesigning, testing, troubleshooting and starting over. “Every day is different,” Marybrenda says. “There’s always something happening.”

Today, the team is deep in fabrication and assembly, waiting for the moment Mara moves under its own power for the first time. “That’s what we’re all working toward,” Marybrenda says.

But for Strathmore Racing, the mission extends far beyond competition. They are building a legacy for future students and for Africa’s engineering ecosystem. “I hope in 10 years, a first-year student won’t have to wish this existed,” Titus says.

Marybrenda dreams even bigger: an African Formula Student platform built by Africans, for Africans. And perhaps that is the real story of Strathmore Racing. They are not just building a car, they are building belief.
“As Africans, we need to move from being consumers to being builders,” Marybrenda says. And in a workshop in Ngong, with sparks flying and a vision taking shape, they are doing exactly that.

Article written by Nekesa Teresa