Vietnamese students are scheduled to begin their campaign at a fuel-efficient car design competition in the Philippines on Friday.

Five student teams from four universities in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Dong Nai Province will compete against over 95 other teams from 14 countries at the Shell Eco-marathon Asia 2014 organized on a street circuit in the heart of the Philippine capital of Manila, the sponsor Shell said on its website.

Student teams entering more than 100 model vehicles may participate in the Prototype or UrbanConcept vehicle categories of the competition.

The Prototype category will see teams using cars of the future – streamlined vehicles focused on maximizing fuel-efficiency through innovative design elements. 

The UrbanConcept category will be dedicated to more “roadworthy” fuel-efficient vehicles that can meet the real-life needs of drivers and are closer in appearance to the higher-mileage cars seen on roads today.

Success is not measured by speed but by who can drive the farthest on a certain amount of fuel.

Students will have the freedom to exercise their creativity in technical and design aspects, with the condition that all competing vehicles meet specific safety rules.

Twenty-four on-track awards, with prizes of $2,000 and $1,000, will be presented to winners and runners up in both the Prototype and UrbanConcept categories.

In addition, teams will also be vying for six off-track awards: Communications, Vehicle Design, Technical Innovation, Safety, Perseverance and Spirit of the Event, and the Shell Helix Tribology Award, which recognizes those student teams that demonstrate the use of lubrication engineering principles to improve the fuel efficiency result of their vehicles.

Closing on Sunday, Shell Eco-marathon Asia 2014 is the fifth edition of an annual innovation competition in which participants build special vehicles to achieve the highest possible fuel efficiency.