Luis “Chapulín” Díaz, a legend of Mexican motorsport long known for mastering speed, no longer has to take the wheel himself.
He’s part of the team behind the first autonomous vehicle to ever participate in the Carrera Panamericana —a high-speed rally that spans thousands of kilometers across Mexico and has been running annually for 75 years.
Known as El Fantástico, the bright orange Tec-PoliMi car aims to showcase the potential of intelligent mobility while generating valuable data to help shape the future of autonomous driving policy in Mexico.
The car is set to drive autonomously for about 300 to 400 kilometers of the race’s 3,500 total, in controlled stretches to ensure safety.
From the lab to the open road
Throughout the route, Tec campuses in cities such as Puebla, Querétaro, León, Aguascalientes, and Santa Fe have been converted into live “pit labs.” There, teams from Tec de Monterrey and Politecnico di Milano recharge the car, download sensor data, and recalibrate its systems before it returns to the road.
“We wanted to go beyond the lab and put our technology to the test in real-world conditions,” explains Jorge Lozoya, leader of Tec’s Bloom Drive Intelligence research group and the project’s developer. “Our goal is to help shape regulations for Latin America and bring innovation closer to industry and government.”
By merging cutting-edge AI with Mexico’s most iconic race, the Tec-PoliMi team is not just pushing the limits of technology —they’re paving the way for a safer, brighter, and more connected future of mobility.
