Driving at high speeds has never been so monotonous.
You’re not going to find anything boring about attaching a seat to the engine of a jet plane and lighting its afterburner. The clip is a bit boring, so we only mentioned it. This is a tribute to Bloodhound LSR and the design of this incredible machine. Not to mention Andy Green’s skill, which makes the run look very simple. This jet car is very, very fast.
The video below shows Green and the Bloodhound hitting 461 mph at their testing site in South Africa. We had planned to write a lot about this high-speed test but the team is making progress almost as fast as the car. As of this article’s posting, Bloodhound LSR had just dropped another video (below), showing Green and the literal land-missile nearly reaching 500 mph.
It was part of another test to measure drag at higher speeds. After the acceleration run, Eurofighter-spec jet engines were throttled to idle. The car then coasted down to 200 MPH before the chute was pulled.
We have been watching the progress of the team through the Bloodhound LSR YouTube channel and so far, the testing phase has gone smoothly. The vehicle’s rear panels have been damaged by debris during higher speeds, but these issues are being addressed with each phase. The car is capable of setting a new world record for speed. That’s one thing that is certain. The video above shows the Bloodhound speeding up from a standstill at 461 mph in only 34 seconds.
The current speed record for the world is 763.035 miles per hour. This was ironically set by Green in a jet-powered car over 20 years ago. Bloodhound LSR currently plans to finish this round of testing and then return next year in pursuit of breaking the record. The goal is to reach 1,000 mph.