by Theresa Machemer/Smithsonianmag.com
The Bloodhound supersonic car has slim aluminum wheels, a ballistic missile-inspired shape, and a 20,000-pound-thrust jet engine. And now, it’s for sale.
The Bloodhound Land Speed Record Project began in 2008 to break the land-speed record set in 1997. Given recent advancements in technology, the team’s engineers believe they will be able to reach over 1,000 miles per hour. The project was sold to Yorkshire businessman Ian Warhurst in 2018, and in 2019, the car drove at a staggering 628 miles per hour.
Warhurst hoped to find outside funding to continue research and development through 2020 in preparation for a late-2021 test drive, but the Covid-19 pandemic interfered with funding and delayed the project by about a year, according to a statement.
The Bloodhound Land Speed Record Project is looking for some fresh investment. Following a tricky financial year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic which has brought delays, the team needs a further £8 million to push the car through its 800mph run.
The Bloodhound’s 800mph attempt was originally scheduled to take place in autumn last year, but Covid-19 restrictions have forced the run to be pushed back to 2022. Now, the firm is faced with two difficult decisions – either put the project onto the market or place the car in long-term storage and wait for the pandemic to end.
However, the company isn’t keen on the latter solution, as there’s no guarantee that it will find the funding to restart the project once the world returns to normality. The engineers are also eager to see the project through – especially given that the planned attempt in 2022 will be the Bloodhound’s first crack at the current land speed record of 763mph, which has stood untouched since it was