How Rapid Iteration in Onshape Fuels the World’s Fastest Remote-Controlled Car

Stephen Wallis, a mechanical engineer from Rugby, England, set a new benchmark for remote-controlled vehicle performance, designing and developing the world’s fastest RC car using Onshape, PTC’s cloud-native CAD and PDM platform.

The RC car, dubbed the “Mach Reaper,” clocked 250.67mph through the timing traps at a ROSSA (Radio Operated Scale Speed Association) speed event held at Llanbedr Airfield in North Wales. The run broke the previous Guinness World Record and made Wallis the first person in history to push a remote-controlled car to those speeds. Just a few weeks later, he broke his own record, reaching 256.47mph at an unofficial speed event.

25 Years of Engineering Experience Shapes RC Design

Wallis brings nearly 25 years of engineering experience to the project. He honed his engineering skills at companies including Royal Enfield, Triumph Motorcycles, and Greenjets, building a career in motorcycle and product development.

“I first used Creo while studying mechanical engineering at Imperial College London in 2002 and have continued to use PTC solutions throughout my career in motorcycle and product development,” said Wallis.

Concept to World Record in 8 Months on Onshape

Wallis began pushing the performance limits of remote-controlled cars in 2024, alongside his day job. He started on Onshape’s free plan for innovators and aspiring designers.

“This was a fantastic initial resource and one I highly recommend,” he said. “As the possibility of a world record became more realistic, I upgraded to a professional license, giving me access to the full functionality of the solution.”

In just eight months, Wallis created, built, tested, and ran the Mach Reaper.

“When I started the Mach Reaper project, Onshape gave me the flexibility, accessibility and design capabilities needed to move quickly from concept through to testing and refinement,” he explained.

Onshape Drives Iteration Across 40 Components

At 250mph, every system on the car is under extreme stress, and refining performance demands repeated design cycles.

“At these speeds, everything becomes difficult. Aerodynamics, tires, electronics, and reliability must all work together, and there have been many iterations along the way to fine-tune performance,” said Wallis.

Wallis credits Onshape’s ease of use and intuitive nature as key drivers in designing the majority of the forty different components in Mach Reaper. Add-in features, including an airfoil creation tool, helped him significantly enhance his initial design, while the platform’s database-driven, cloud-native architecture meant he could continue working on the project when away from home.

FEA Refines Suspension and Aluminum Wheel Design

Finite element analysis played a central role in refining the final design, allowing Wallis to simulate different suspension and aluminum wheel designs before committing to them.

“This helped me refine the end model and, importantly, eke out that extra bit of speed without damaging the car,” he said.

Onshape’s Ease-of-Access Simplifies Outsourced Parts

Wallis manufactured most of Mach Reaper’s components in-house, using 3D printing or working by hand. For aluminum and carbon-fiber parts, he turned to outside suppliers, a process made straightforward by Onshape’s ability to share designs instantly.

Wallis Shares Engineering Lessons with Students

For the Onshape team, the project shows what an individual engineer can achieve with modern product development tools.

“Stephen’s achievement is a remarkable example of what happens when engineering talent, determination, and modern product development tools come together,” said Greg Brown, Vice President of Product Management at Onshape by PTC. “In just eight months, he transformed an ambitious idea into a world-record-breaking vehicle, and we’re proud that Onshape played a role in that journey.”

Brown also highlighted Wallis’s commitment to sharing his knowledge. “The record itself is impressive, but what stands out most is Stephen’s passion for sharing what he’s learned,” he said. “Through his YouTube channel and work with students, he’s helping inspire the next generation of engineers, makers, and innovators to pursue their own ambitious ideas.”

Wallis’s engineering-focused YouTube channel attracts tens of thousands of regular viewers, and he is currently supporting his son Roy’s own record-breaking RC car attempts.

Next Up: A 300mph Jet-Powered RC Car

Wallis isn’t stopping at his world record. He is now exploring plans for a jet-powered remote-controlled car capable of exceeding 300mph.