Name and Location
Bloodhound supersonic car (SSC) project, Bristol, UK.

Client
Founder sponsors include Swansea University, the Engineering and Sciences Research Council, the Serco group, University of the West of England and STP.

Project Description
The project involves the construction of, possibly, the world’s fastest car.

The SSC is an amalgamation of car and aircraft technology, with the front half being a carbon-fibre monocoque, similar to that of a racing car, and the back half being a metallic frame, with panels like those of an aircraft. It will weigh more than seven tonnes.

The Bloodhound will have a slender, 14-m-long body, with two front wheels mounted within the body and two rear wheels mounted externally within the wheel fairings.

Value
R515-million.

Duration
The timeframe for the 1 600 km/h run will be 2016.

Latest Developments
The Bloodhound project has announced a delay in its attempt to break the land-speed record at Hakskeen Pan, in South Africa.

The date for the start of the campaign has been postponed to 2017. In 2014, it was estimated that the series of runs to break to record would start in 2015.

The UK-based project team says the Bloodhound supersonic car (SSC) will face runway trials in the UK this year, with the first (800 m/h) record attempt projected to take place in South Africa the following year.

The ultimate goal, over several months, is to reach a speed of 1 609 km/h.

The current world land-speed record of 1 228 km/h (763 m/h) is held by the Thrust SSC, a UK team led by project director Richard Noble and driver Andy Green – the same team that will attempt to break the record.

The reason for the delay is that a number of major funding deals are still under negotiation.

“The most difficult part is behind us. We have designed and built the world’s ultimate racing car and prepared the best land-speed racing track in history,” Noble has said.

Noble says the Bloodhound project is achieving its primary goal “without the car running”.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Castrol (lubricants, brake and hydraulic fluids), Poynting (antennas).

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Mettle PR on behalf of Bloodhound, Jules Tipler, tel +44 7811 166 796 or email jules.tipler@mettlepr.com.