If you were travelling at 368mph, you could cover the length of a football pitch in about half a second; and that’s the incredible speed achieved by the JCB Hydromax, a 32-foot-long racing car powered by hydrogen. Driven by Wing Commander Andy Green OBE, the Hydromax has set a new speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA.
A New Record
To set the record, Hydromax had to complete two high-speed runs on consecutive days. It recorded 367.141mph on its first run and reached a maximum of 369.554mph on the second. That made its official average speed 368.347mph! That beat the previous class record of 348.342mph, which had stood since 2010.
Powered by Hydrogen
Instead of petrol or diesel, the Hydromax uses two hydrogen internal combustion engines built by JCB. Together, they’re being turned up to produce as much as 1,600 horsepower. JCB hopes the super-fast machine can show just how powerful hydrogen technology can be.
And the driver certainly knows about speed! Andy Green is also the fastest person ever on land, having driven at 763.035mph and broken the sound barrier in 1997.
Can It Go Even Faster?
The team has already completed 44 test runs, but they now plan to turn up the power and attempt an official FIA world record at Bonneville.
Good luck!
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