World's fastest diesel smashes record

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  • New record

    New record

    Andy Green has broken the world record for speed in a diesel car by more than 100 miles per hour at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on Wednesday. Green drove Britain-based JCB's JCB Dieselmax, a computer-designed car with an engine normally used in backhoe loaders. After reaching a speed of 328mph on Tuesday, he completed the test by averaging 350mph over two runs on Wednesday. The old record, set in 1973, was 236mph.

    To qualify for the world record, a vehicle must meet FIA (Federation Internationale de l'Automobile) guidelines: It must complete two trials within an hour of each other--then the average top speed of the two is recorded. On Wednesday, Green drove the JCB Dieselmax at 365mph on his first run and 335mph on his second.

    Caption by: Andy Smith

  • Andy Green

    Andy Green

    Driver Andy Green is a Royal Air Force fighter pilot who turned to breaking land-speed records. In 1997, he became the only man to travel at supersonic speed on land by driving the ThrustSSC at 763.035mph on the Black Rock Desert in Nevada.

    Caption by: Andy Smith

  • Under construction

    Under construction

    The JCB Dieselmax was designed entirely by a computer. A highly detailed 2D computer model of the car was first developed to study the fit of the components, then a mock-up was built for testing before the final JCB Dieselmax was built.

    Read the technical specifications of the car.

    Caption by: Andy Smith

  • back hoe engine

    back hoe engine

    The JCB Dieselmax which resembles a "speeder" from the "Star Wars" movies is powered by two JCB444 4-cylinder, 4.4 liter diesel engines that have a combined total of 1,500 horsepower. The engines normally drive JCB's backhoe loaders and Loadall telescopic handlers. The car is 29.8 feet long and 3.8 feet wide.

    JCB is best known as a worldwide manufacturer of construction equipment.

    Caption by: Andy Smith

  • Fine tuning

    Fine tuning

    Before the record-breaking run, mechanics fine tune the JCB Dieselmax.

    Caption by: Andy Smith

  • Chutes

    Chutes

    The chutes deploy to slow down Andy Green after his record-breaking drive.

    Caption by: Andy Smith

  • Adding ice

    Adding ice

    Technicians add ice to cool down the engine.

    Caption by: Andy Smith

  • Andy Green

    Andy Green

    Driver Andy Green is carried off in triumph by his crew.

    Caption by: Andy Smith

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The computer-designed JCB Dieselmax was officially clocked at 350 mph--breaking the land speed record for diesel engines.

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New record

Andy Green has broken the world record for speed in a diesel car by more than 100 miles per hour at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on Wednesday. Green drove Britain-based JCB's JCB Dieselmax, a computer-designed car with an engine normally used in backhoe loaders. After reaching a speed of 328mph on Tuesday, he completed the test by averaging 350mph over two runs on Wednesday. The old record, set in 1973, was 236mph.

To qualify for the world record, a vehicle must meet FIA (Federation Internationale de l'Automobile) guidelines: It must complete two trials within an hour of each other--then the average top speed of the two is recorded. On Wednesday, Green drove the JCB Dieselmax at 365mph on his first run and 335mph on his second.

Caption by: Andy Smith

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