Bloodhound roars across desert for first time in land speed record preparation

The Bloodhound LSR car has roared across the South African desert for the first time, reaching 100mph (160km/h) on its Hakskeenpan track 11 years and two days after first being announced.

The relatively low speed run came after the car was officially revealed in the desert on Monday (21 October). Powered by an EJ200 Eurofighter Typhoon jet engine, the vehicle is undergoing testing before driver Andy Green tries to smash the world land speed record by driving it faster than 1,000mph (1,609km/h). The attempt will reportedly take place in the next year to 18 months.

The 100mph ‘shake down test’ came at the end of ‘Run Profile One’. The test was to bed in the brakes and check throttle and steering, according to the project’s official Twitter account. A video posted online showed fans watching as the car roared in the distance.

The successful test followed some technical issues, including a water leak after a failed weld and a fuel pump issue.

The next tests will push the speed each time, building in increments of 50mph (80km/h). According to an announcement earlier this week, one of the key objectives is to evaluate how the car behaves when slowing down and stopping.

“Newquay was all about getting up to speed and finding out how quickly we could get the engine to full power and accelerate using max reheat,” said engineering director Mark Chapman. “Andy was on the throttle for two seconds to reach 200 mph (322 km/h) in eight seconds. Here at the Hakskeenpan on a 10 mile (16 kilometre) track we can accelerate for much longer, achieve higher speeds and investigate the car’s stability, performance and drag, all crucial as we move towards setting a new world land speed record.”