Bloodhound LSR Hits 1,010 KPH in 50 Seconds

For the past few weeks we have been treated to extreme performance entertainment from a jet-engined car. And honestly, we enjoy that. The vehicle we’re talking about is none other than the Bloodhound LSR, which have been reaching amazing velocities at the Kalahari Desert in South Africa. The team behind this action aren’t just looking for thrill, but they’re preparing to break the land speed record in 2020.

The first test produced an impressive enough speed, which was 334 mph. For road cars or even track cars, this kind of speed is already insane, and it’s life threatening regardless of whatever car you sit in. But for the EJ200-powered Bloodhound LSR, that wasn’t fast enough, that’s why it doubled that speed in the latest run.

The ultra-fast car did that last week, with a new maximum speed of 628 mph, which is even better than 600 mph the team was targeting. And they’re getting closer to the record that is their main goal, with the remaining gap now ‘only’ 134 mph.

Andy Green was still the hero sitting behind the wheel. As the run started, the Bloodhound LSR was launched in ‘max dry’ mode and reached 50 mph. The afterburner was then activated and in a short time the machine touched its top speed. To be more precise, it took just 50 seconds. Andy lifted off the throttle at 615 mph and deployed the parachute to curb all the wildness at 6.83 mile (11 km) mark.

Astonishing speed numbers were a kind of bonus and the team already knew that such numbers would appear, but the main purpose of these tests was to find out the level of drag that the car generates in diverse scenarios at various velocities. At the same time, the reliability of the wheel brakes and drag parachute were also tested to ensure overall vehicle readiness for the next year’s major action.

The size of the rocket that will be used will be determined based on data collected from the tests. To break the new land speed record, the Bloodhound LSR needs to surpass the 763-mph speed clocked by the ThrustSSC way back in 1997. The monster was happened to be driven by Andy Green as well.