From the outset, it was a pretty complicated plan. HOT ROD got together with Universal Technical Institute to figure out a way to promote HOT ROD U, a special course taught at UTI campuses. After a lot of brainstorming, the idea for a campus challenge came up, and when all the handshakes were done, we had a bona fide shootout brewing.

Factory Five Racing stepped up to donate four FFR Spec Racer Roadster kits, and UTI chose four campuses to build them: Avondale, Arizona; Glendale Heights, Illinois; Exton, Pennsylvania; and Houston, Texas. The Houston campus had the home-field advantage, as that's where the final competition would be held-on the dyno at their campus and at Houston Raceway Park in nearby Baytown, Texas.

Rules and testing parameters were determined, and the campuses got busy after receiving their FFR kits in late summer of 2005. They were helped by the generosity of the companies involved, most notably Shell Corp.'s Quaker State brand, which was the title sponsor. Ford Racing provided the powerplants, FFR provided the components to build the Spec Racers, Summit Racing provided $10,000 in product at each campus's request, Comp Cams provided technical assistance and custom camshaft grinds, and Auto Air Colors supplied product and technical assistance for completing the paint and body on each vehicle.

In February 2006, all four cars were finished and shipped to the Houston campus on a Reliable hauler, and the competition was on. Read on for details on how each car fared.
The end result was an intense-but-fun-spirited competition that met its primary goals: to showcase the training available at UTI campuses for today's performance-automotive youth to become tomorrow's automotive professionals and to bring continued enthusiasm to the performance-car culture. Passion for their profession is the ultimate reward, and the students and instructors who worked on the cars were certainly full of passion.