I’M sat in a Defender with the crew chief, a paramedic and a fireman waiting for the radio signal to “PUSH”. And we’re off.
We use the Defender to nudge JCB Hydromax to 60mph, then try to keep up as it engages first gear and roars off into the distance.
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The JCB Hydromax has 1,600hp and is designed to attempt a hydrogen world land-speed record live on YouTube Credit: James Arbuckle
Land speed record holder Andy Green will drive the motor – which is designed to do 350mph Credit: James Arbuckle
Speed king Andy Green hits 177mph in his new motor before releasing the parachute and coming to a halt a mile or so down the runway. Test complete.
Thankfully, our second job as a first-response unit wasn’t required.Otherwise that’d be a code brown. For Andy. And everyone else involved.
Andy flips up the fighter jet-style canopy and pulls out a pen and paper to make notes. Cool AF.
The parachute is packed up, engineers push Hydromax round in a giant U-turn (she’s 32ft long with no reverse gear) and we head back to base to analyse the data and prepare for another run.
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Rinse and repeat. Rinse and repeat.
It’s not long before Hydromax is shipped to America to attempt a hydrogen world land-speed record live on YouTube.
Andy said: “It’s a complicated animal and everything has to work seamlessly. So we’re slowly building up confidence in the car, doing repeatable checks on all the subsystems, cranking up the engine pressures and building up the speed.”
Complicated animal? You can say that again.
Britain’s new land-speed racer is powered by two JCB hydrogen DIGGER ENGINES — mounted sideways, one either side of the cockpit — combined with intercoolers, turbos, high-pressure fuel tanks, Le Mans-spec Xtrac gearboxes, and a big ice tank in its nose.
The carbon-fibre body is wrapped around a dragster-style space-frame chassis and an FIA-spec monocoque to keep Andy safe.
Jattvibe Motors was able to use a Defender to nudge the JCB Hydromax to 60mph before it roared into the distance Credit: James Arbuckle
A paramedic and fireman were on hand at the testing site as a precaution Credit: simon thompson
Now a regular JCB hydrogen digger is 74hp with a top speed of about 30mph.
This thing is 1,600hp (see you later Mr Bugatti Chiron) and is designed to do 350mph.
That’s the official target, the same speed Andy achieved in JCB Dieselmax in 2006.
But I reckon we might see north of 400mph at the famous Bonneville Salt Flats in six weeks’ time. Even on a shorter nine-mile course.
Andy said: “I can’t wait to get to Bonneville and see how fast we can go.
“This car is lower drag, lighter and has more performance, 800hp each engine as opposed to 750hp from the diesel engines in Dieselmax.
“Balance that against the fact the course is going to be shorter because of the salt conditions, we need the more aggressive acceleration.
“But looking at all the numbers, we will get to 350mph.”
The uniquely shaped JCB Hydromax is as long as a double-decker bus
The testing saw Andy clock up an impressive 177mph Credit: simon thompson
For those of you who don’t know or have forgotten, Andy is still the only man to break the sound barrier on land — 763mph in rocket car Thrust SSC back in 1997.
He achieved 628mph testing Bloodhound SSC seven years ago. But the mission to reach 1,000mph was scuppered by Covid and the project ran out of cash.
So will this be Andy’s last ride?
He’ll be 64 by the time he gets to Bonneville.
And why is he risking his life chasing a speed record that ultimately won’t go top of his Wiki profile?
The short answer is the technology behind it. Hydrogen engines are clean.
They emit only water. So this is about proving the technology in a way a digger never could.
Andy said: “I cannot imagine anything more exciting than a zero-carbon 1,600hp hydrogen racing car that showcases great British engineering on a global stage.
A regular JCB hydrogen digger is 74hp with a top speed of about 30mph Credit: simon thompson
It is possible the Hydromax outperforms the target of 350mph Credit: simon thompson
“We are looking forward and saying ‘this is the technology of the future’.
“Yes, hydrogen’s been around a while but this is what you can now do with it.
“You can buy a hydrogen-powered digger and a hydrogen-powered generator.
“A quick carbon-free way of refuelling and powering vehicles for construction, haulage and farming — and what a brilliant way to advertise that technology.
“Nothing is going to be better than this, so, yes, I think this will be my last one.
“I can say I’ve been very lucky to drive some cool cars.”
Best of British, Andy. We’re all behind you.
And I mean, right behind you.
