While many of us watched the NFL playoffs on January 17, dr. Larry Caplin focused on a 2.3-mile piece of concrete at the Kennedy Space Center’s Johnny Bohmer Proving Grounds in Merritt Island, Fla. There, on the same runway previously used for landing on spacecraft, Caplin took his own SSC Tuatara car to a new production car speed record and recorded two passes in opposite directions with an average speed of 282.9 km / h h – a performance that SSC North America officially announced this morning.
The performance obscures the former benchmark of 277.87 km / h set by the Koenigsegg Agera RS in 2017. Boasting rights almost went to Bugatti in August 2019, when a Chiron ordered to 304.77 km / h. Unfortunately, the car was not a production version for the French brand, and it only drove in one direction (two are officially required).
Even SSC North America recently rejected a claim. In October, the company’s engineer and founder, Jerod Shelby (no connection to Carroll), and the crew brought the 1,750-hp carbon fiber Tuatara to Nevada. They initially reported an astonishing few runs that together averaged 316.11 mph. The prospective milestone was quickly disputed, and Shelby admitted shortly afterwards that he could not verify the results accurately.
“We could not make full sense of our data and could not bring this doubt to the fore,” Shelby said. Robb report yesterday telephonically. “So we decided ourselves to do the only right thing to do to run for the record again,” he said. “And do it this time in full transparency.”
The SSC Tuatara at the Kennedy Space Center’s Johnny Bohmer Proving Grounds.
Photo: courtesy of SSC North America.
For the second time, the transparency included GPS and measurement equipment from four separate companies, each bringing in its own staff to install and monitor the equipment without any involvement from the SSC North American crew. “We did our research, and Racelogic turns out to be the most respected GPS measurement company out there,” Shelby said. “That’s why we wanted them to be the third party that would release all the data and verify the results.” Racelogic did just that by issuing its own press release and providing video documentation for each pass.
The 1,750 hp Tuatara tears off the runway.
Photo: courtesy of SSC North America.
At exactly 2:38:09 local time, Caplin hit 279.7 km / h north. Another 50 minutes, 42 seconds later, he pulled 286.1 km / h southward over the same section, both speeding faster than the spacecraft in contact. More impressive, perhaps, is that Caplin is not a professional driver; Rather, he is the first customer to buy a Tuatara, starting at $ 1.6 million.
Dr. Larry Caplin and the crew discuss the record attempt.
Photo: courtesy of SSC North America.
For the October attempt, Caplin handed the car over to racer Oliver Webb, but asked to take the wheel himself for the latest three. Shelby recalled asking himself, “Do you want to throw the variable of a customer driving, and someone who has spent almost no time at 200 mph?” According to Shelby, Caplin’s answer was simple: ‘You know, what if we pull it out? How big would it be? ”
Training sessions in Florida were conducted after the engine of the car, a 5.9-liter twin-turbo V-8, which delivered 1,242 ft of torque, was initially significantly smaller. “We took a lot of power out of the car and got Larry used to it,” Shelby explained. “As he became more comfortable, we continued to re-energize.”
Jerod Shelby, founder of the SSC North America, gives the thumbs up.
Photo: courtesy of SSC North America.
The team also had a different approach to acceleration. “When we were in Nevada, we raised the car very slowly and easily to about 180 mph, and then had about 20 seconds full of gas,” Shelby said, adding that the track in Florida was much shorter and an appeal. did. to go into ‘drag-race mode’, which meant a full boost for 40 to 50 seconds from standstill, and the car continued to accelerate as if a rocket had been attached. ‘
Dr. Larry Caplin in the cockpit.
Photo: courtesy of SSC North America.
It is surprising that the performance was done with the full power of the car first made available in the middle of the seventh gear, leaving room for significant improvement as far as Shelby is concerned: ‘We already have plans to go back and feel that if we give him full power now we have a very good chance of hitting 300 km / h – just as small 2.3 km. ”