The Vietnamese teams include Bio-Energy from the Hanoi University of Technology, BK-ICE from Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, and AT-01 and AT-02 from the HCMC University of Industry.

The competition attracts 1,500 students from 18 countries across Asia who will be challenged to design, build and test ultra energy-efficient vehicles.

The winners are the teams that go the furthest while using the least amount of energy.

Competitors can join either or both of the two categories, Prototype and UrbanConcept.

All of the four Vietnamese teams take part in the Prototype event.

Shell Eco-marathon began in 1939 at a Shell research laboratory in the US as a friendly wager between scientists to see who could get the most miles per gallon from their vehicle. The first Shell Eco-marathon was launched in 1985 in France, and in 2007 in the US.

The inaugural Shell Eco-marathon Asia was held in Malaysia in 2010. Malaysia will continue to host Shell Eco-Marathon Asia until 2013, following which, the event will move to Manila, Philippines from 2014 to 2016.