How Does a Cardboard Car Race Work? The Mechanic Rally Team Game
Teams design, build and race their own cardboard vehicle on a track. The steps, timing and group size of Mechanic Rally, explained in this guide.
Mechanic Rally is a team game where teams design and build their own race vehicle on a wheeled chassis using cardboard, tape and coloured paper, then race it on a track. In short, it is a cardboard car race, but the real work happens in the workshop before the race.
In the video a hotel ballroom has turned into a workshop. Tables hold packing tape, scissors and coloured card; on the floor, teams crouch around wheeled chassis, cutting, folding and taping the bodywork. Once the vehicles get their numbers and team markings, they head out onto a course marked with cones. The product page for this format is Company Rally.
How does a cardboard car race work?
- Briefing: teams learn the rules the vehicle must meet, the scoring criteria and the time limit.
- Design: bodywork, colours, team name and number are planned on paper.
- Build: cardboard is cut, taped to the chassis and the body is reinforced.
- Accessories: spoilers, logos, flags and decorations are added.
- Technical inspection: vehicles are scored for sturdiness and design.
- Race: with one pilot at the wheel and teammates pushing, the team completes the cone course.
What does building a cardboard car add to teamwork?
Limited time and limited materials make teams split roles on their own. Someone sketches the design, someone reinforces the body, someone keeps track of time and the scoring rules. The technical inspection teaches the balance between "make it look good" and "make sure it survives the race", an enjoyable rehearsal of the trade-off between quality and speed at work. In the race, everyone who built the car cheers for it from the side of the track.
Scoring is part of the game too. Race position is not the only measure; the car's design, sturdiness, fit with the team identity and meeting the time limit are scored separately. That way the winner is not simply the fastest car but the team that delivers the most balanced work, and everyone who put effort into the workshop sees their contribution in the result.
How many people, and how long does it take?
Company Rally is played in teams of 5 to 15, up to 20 teams, and is designed to last between 90 and 180 minutes. It can be set up in a hotel ballroom like the one in the video, a congress foyer or outdoors; we bring the materials, chassis and course. Instead of a classic car, it can also be played with a ship, F1 or battle vehicle concept. For past events in different venues, see our posts on Company Rally in a ballroom and the company rally in Didim.
If you want a building game but prefer a shared structure to a race, Highway, where teams build sections of one merged motorway, is a good alternative.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you would like to run a cardboard car race for your team, contact us and we will draw the right course for your venue together.
Start with 5 short questions: we'll prepare a custom quote in under 24 hours.
