Created in 1996 and participating in its first competition in 1997, UFSC baja team was founded under the guidance of Professor Honorato Antônio Tomelin and named Team Floripa. Professor Tomelin supervised the project until the year 2000, with the team building prototypes Papa Terra (1997), Berbigão (1998) and Baiacu (1999), the last two names referring to species of marine fauna in Florianópolis/SC – Brazil.

In 2000, the team is supervised by professor Narciso Angel Ramos Arroyo and has its name changed to Vento Sul. In the same year, an independent baja team called Uiraçu was founded, supervised by professor Lauro Cesar Nicolazzi. In 2002, the Ilhéu Team was created, supervised by professor Amir Antonio Martins de Oliveira Junior. It was only in 2003 that the two teams, Ilhéu and Uiraçu, joined together to form the current UFSC Baja SAE Team and under the guidance of Professor Nicolazzi.

The team’s project developed, following the growth of the Baja movement itself in Brazil. From 2000 to 2013, the team competed with two vehicles with different projects, initially called Ilhéu and Uiraçu and later Puma and Jaguar. In 2003, the Baja SAE Brasil – Stage South competition started in Gravataí, known simply as Baja Sul. In the years 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012, the UFSC Baja SAE Team won first place in the South regional competition, as well as being in third place in the national competition in 2005, 2009 and 2013 for which in the last two years it guaranteed the participation of the team in the international competition in the United States, obtaining the 8th and 20th places among approximately 100 teams from all over the world . The team also ranked 4th in the national competition in 2006 and 2018, in addition to obtaining the podium several times from dynamic events such as suspension, traction and acceleration. In the project, students apply the knowledge obtained inside and outside the classroom and develop the vehicle for competitions at regional, national and internacional levels.

With more than twenty years of history, the project has become a reference for other competition teams due to the excellent results obtained in competitions. The team aims to train its members and become a means for students to apply the knowledge obtained during graduation. When developing projects, it allows participants to enter a responsible teamwork environment. In addition to technical development, which encompasses the areas of engineering, computing and design, as well as areas of people management and marketing, preparing students for professional life.