[Veselin Kolev]

A good frame material I've heard of is carbon fiber board. You know.. the stuff motherboards are made out of. I'm guessing that if you make a basic chassis out of steel angle irons, and bolt on sheets of carbon fiber, it'll take a lot more damage than if you have polycarb side panels.

A related question:

I've seen how they make some airplanes, they get a big mold and use a special machine to lay carbon fiber all over it, making a shell. I've also heard they use this method for race cars. Of course I doubt many FIRST teams have access to NASCAR shops, but does anyone know how carbon fiber laying works? It would be cool to see a molded carbon fiber frame some day.