JCB’s hydrogen-powered land speed record car, the Hydromax, has completed its UK shakedown programme at RAF Wittering in Cambridgeshire, reaching 208mph and setting the stage for a world land speed record attempt at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah next month.
The 32-foot car – powered by two of JCB’s own production-based hydrogen internal combustion engines producing a combined 1,600bhp – was driven by Wing Commander Andy Green OBE, who pushed it to 208mph, up from 177mph recorded earlier in the programme.
iVT shot a behind-the-scenes video during testing at RAF Wittering in June.
Data and preparation as important as speed
Beyond the headline figure, the Staffordshire-based company says the tests delivered engineering data and procedural refinements that will be critical at Bonneville, where turnaround times between runs can determine whether a record attempt goes ahead. The team used the sessions to optimise the Hydromax’s hydrogen refuelling process and rehearse tyre changes and crew communications.
“Reaching 208mph is a tremendous result, but the real value of these tests is what we have learned,” says Ryan Ballard, engineering director at JCB, who is leading the project. “We now understand how the car behaves under load, we have refined our hydrogen refuelling, and we have built the teamwork and communication that will be decisive at Bonneville. Every refuel, run and tyre change we have rehearsed here is one we won’t be doing for the first time on the salt. We will arrive fully prepared, with a car and a crew that know exactly what they are doing.”
JCB chairman Anthony Bamford added: “The UK testing programme has given us everything we had hoped for and more. We have a car that runs, a crew that knows it inside out and a wealth of real-world data that no amount of theory could ever provide. The team has done a magnificent job and our focus now turns entirely to the Salt Flats and a new world hydrogen land speed record.”
Green and the Bonneville record
Andy Green, the only person to have broken the sound barrier on land – setting the outright world land speed record of 763.035mph in 1997 – is no stranger to Bonneville. In 2006 he drove JCB’s Dieselmax car to a Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) diesel world land speed record of 350.092mph, powered by two JCB engines. That record still stands, and the Hydromax is designed to surpass it.
“To run JCB Hydromax up to 208mph here in the UK is hugely encouraging,” says Green. “The car feels strong and the team has gelled brilliantly. Now comes the real challenge – Bonneville, the spiritual home of the World Land Speed Record. I can’t wait to get out on the salt.”
From Staffordshire to Utah
Unveiled at JCB’s world headquarters in Staffordshire on 12 May, the Hydromax will now be prepared for shipping to the United States. In Utah, the team will first compete at SpeedWeek, run by the Southern California Timing Association (SCTA), before pursuing an officially recognised record under FIA rules.
The record bid comes as JCB prepares to open a new $500 million factory in San Antonio, Texas. Lord Bamford has overseen the company’s £100 million investment in hydrogen-powered internal combustion engines, which now power diggers coming off JCB production lines.
JCB has previous form in land speed records: the JCB Fastrac became the world’s fastest tractor at 135.191mph in 2019, and the JCB GT set the backhoe loader record at 72.58mph in 2014.
Images: Christopher Court-Dobson
