The inaugural three-day competition, which starts on June 18, will go via 46 universities and is being jointly run by Formula Student and Bosch.

Each team will drive a section of the route – while having their eco-driving ability measured by on-board computers - before passing the vehicle on to the next university. The College of Engineering team will set off from Swansea University at 7:20am on June 19, and will jointly drive 100 miles to Bath with Swansea Metropolitan University.

Patrick Kniveton, President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers – which runs Formula Student – will flag off the event at the Institution’s Westminster headquarters at 11am.

From Westminster, the car will head to the first stop – Queen Mary, University of London in Mile End – before the route heads south along the coast and then west towards Swansea.

It will then zigzag across England and Scotland towards the final destination of Aberdeen University on June 21.

Teams will be driving a Ford Fiesta, powered by a 1.5-litre TDCi diesel engine, which uses Bosch common rail diesel injectors and a high-pressure Bosch fuel pump. Monitoring equipment will analyse the efficiency of each team’s driving, with three awards up for grabs, which cover city, rural and highway driving.  

Joe said: “I’m looking forward to participating in this challenge to mark the 15^th anniversary of Formula Student.”

The students, including three from Wales and five from Scotland, will be joined in the vehicle by an AA representative, who will help with the route and economical driving tips. Students taking part are all involved with Formula Student 2013, taking place at Silverstone from 4-7 July. The event challenges universities from across the world to design, build and race a single seat racing car from scratch in one year – before putting it to the test at one of the world’s greatest racetracks.

Jon Hilton, Chairman of Formula Student, said: “This is a fantastic challenge which will certainly prepare all the students for July’s competition.

“It’s the first time we’ve attempted a driving challenge of this scale and I wish all the teams the best of luck.”

Distances between universities range will from three miles to over 100 miles, but each team will be monitored equally. Prizes will be awarded at the Formula Student competition at Silverstone.

Peter Fouquet, president of Bosch UK, said: “With the help of Bosch technologies, the vehicle being used for the Formula Student Diesel Eco Driving Challenge achieves CO2 emissions of just 98g/km. In the near future, Bosch sees the potential across all vehicle segments for even greater CO2 emissions reductions – of up to 20 percent in some cases.”

During the Formula Student Diesel Eco Driving Challenge, drivers will use the Bosch Car Multimedia division’s satellite navigation app, as well as a data logger from Bosch’s subsidiary, ETAS. Shell is generously supplying FuelSave diesel for this Challenge.