After bouncing back from near-bankruptcy to embark on a new round of testing in the South African desert, things are now going rather swimmingly for the folks behind the Bloodhound LSR supersonic car. The team has now propelled the car beyond 500 mph (804 km/h), a massive milestone that places it in the top 10 fastest cars on the planet.
Described as a jet plane, F1 car and spaceship in one vehicle, the Bloodhound LSR is built to claim the land speed record of 763.035 mph (1,227.9 km/h) and the last week or so has seen it take great strides toward this goal.
At the testing site in South Africa’s Kalahari Desert last week, the team unleashed the jet-engine-powered vehicle for the first time since it was rebranded earlier in the year. This saw the car hit record speeds of 334 mph (537 km/h), which it swiftly followed up with a 461-mph run (741.9-km/h) last Friday.
Intent on keeping the ball rolling, the team has again taken to the dried out lakebed and had another hugely successful outing. The Bloodhound LSR actually reached 501 mph (806 km/h), before its twin parachutes were successfully deployed to help bring it to a halt.
This test takes the Bloodhound LSR into the top 10 fastest cars in the world – unofficially for now but that will soon change if the trend continues. From here, the team is working on some minor repairs and is targeting 550 mph (885 mph), with the next run planned for the coming days.
All going to plan, a land speed record attempt is slated for late 2020 and it might not end there, with the team also hopeful of eventually blasting past the 1,000-mph (1,609 km/h) mark.
Footage of the 501-mph run can be seen below.
Source: Bloodhound LSR