Power
MASTER OF SPEED
Faster is what every car wants to be. But only one can be the fastest. In 2017, the Koenigsegg Agera RS set the record at 447 km/h. In 2020, the SSC Tuatara made an attempt.
Faster, that's what every car wants to be. But only one can be the fastest. In 2017, the Koenigsegg Agera RS achieved the record of 447 km/h. Could the mythical limit of 500 km/h be broken? In 2020, the SSC Tuatara made an attempt that caused a commotion. 'SSC accused of faking speed record.' Text: Eltjo Nieuwenhuis
Online editor: Natasha Hendriks
Speed record
The program speed record for cars broke the sound barrier in 1997. The Thrust SSC reached a top speed of 1.228 km/h and this record still stands. Formally, this Thrust SuperSonic Car is a car, but in the broadest definition. Let's just say the driver was a fighter pilot for a reason. There is also a speed record for production cars. This is also not a battle between everyday middle class cars, but these are indeed cars that are produced in series and are for sale. Suppose you sit on a terrace in Monaco for half an hour, all the main players in this competition could just drive by.
Fake News
Record attempts must be verified, and there are many conditions attached to this. For example, the GPS data must be validated and the final certification must come from Guinness World Records. The data was very extensive SSC not, but everything seemed to be right until SSC's YouTube videos came online. Almost immediately, conspiracy theories arose based on the images. This record would be fake news. And to be honest, the elapsed time, measured speeds and distances traveled in the videos did not seem to be completely in sync. According to SSC, errors had unconsciously crept into the editing of their videos, but yes, they had put them online themselves. So the record was not officially recognized. As is the way online, SSC was tarred and feathered across the Internet. Serious car journalists, on the other hand, gave the proven record holder from 2007 the benefit of the doubt for the time being. But it was of course advisable that SSC not wait too long before making a new attempt.
SSC strikes back
The time had come on January 17, 2021. At the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Tuatara achieved an average top speed of 3,7 km/h over a run of just 455 kilometers. This new record has now been confirmed. Of course, 455 is significantly less than the previous, unvalidated record of 508 km/h, but the SSC was driven by its owner and not by a professional driver. Partly for this reason, 1370 hp was used and not the maximum available 1.775 hp. In addition, 3,7 kilometers is actually too short for a record attempt. Both the disputed record and the old record of Koenigsegg were placed on a route of more than eleven kilometers. Since a kilometer takes just eight seconds at 450 km/h, a longer run is necessary to reach the mythical 500 km/h. Planning a record attempt takes time. You can't just close off a stretch of highway, that requires planning, crew and permits. In addition, there is a chance of snow in many places in winter, so many locations are excluded. But of course that long run will actually happen, including professional driver, racing gasoline and enough time to continue accelerating beyond 455 km/h. Of the S.S.C. Tuatara we'll hear more.
