JCB will attempt to claim another land speed record in August with a new hydrogen-fuelled vehicle, two decades on from its famous record run with the Dieselmax.
The new record chaser is a 32ft-long, hydrogen-combustion vehicle named Hydromax. It was created as part of a five-year, £100 million project, on which JCB worked with partners including Prodrive, the Oxfordshire-based engineering firm renowned for creating top-end motorsport machinery.
It’s powered by an in-house-developed powertrain that combines two engines for 1579bhp, featuring special radiators, intercoolers and racing-spec turbochargers.
The engines are mechanically not far from those that will soon be used in production JCB diggers, with “very similar” internals, chief engineer Lee Harper told Autocar. One major difference, however, is that they produce just 80bhp each in a standard form.
Explaining how his team was able to create the record chaser’s extraordinary output from those engines, Harper said: “The secret of high power is getting the fuel and air to mix properly. Hydrogen is an ideal fuel in that it is keen to explode – but only if it mixes correctly with air. We’ve done a lot of work on that - and it will benefit our production engines in future.”
The Hydromax will take to the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah in August, the same location where Dieselmax claimed its diesel land speed record of 350.092mph in August 2006 – one that still stands.
UK testing will begin next month before the team heads to take part in the annual Bonneville Speedweek from 1-7 August, where competitors from around the globe gather to chase records.
Shortly afterwards, official hydrogen land speed record runs will take place under the gaze of motorsport’s governing body, the FIA.
The aim, according to JCB chairman Lord Bamford, is to “beat” the Dieselmax’s 350mph limit.
He explained: “Dieselmax was always a bit of an unusual idea, but it proved a point. It’s the same thinking with hydrogen today. If you’re serious about emissions, you have to be serious about hydrogen – and a land speed project is the perfect way to prove it.”
Lord Bamford told Autocar that although the Dieselmax (pictured below) provided “a lot of invaluable knowledge” for the layout and design of the new Hydromax, “the only carry-over component is our driver”.
