The Bloodhound may be named after a dog breed, but it seems to have a cat’s nine lives.
The project’s administrators announced its cancellation earlier this year after failing to raise enough funding to continue its operation. Shortly thereafter, British entrepreneur Ian Warhurst bought the project—giving it a new lease on life. Warhurst has a background in mechanical engineering and has been a fan of the supercar, and could potentially bring his extensive expertise to the vehicle.
“It’s clear how much this unique British project means to people, all around the world,” said Warhurst. “My family and I have been supporters too for many years, and I am delighted to have been able to safeguard the business and assets.”
The Bloodhound aims to encourage young people to get involved in STEM fields by showcasing those subjects in a unique project: designing and building a car that can travel faster than 1,000 miles an hour—and set a new Outright World Land Speed Record (the current record, set in 1997, is 763 mph). At that speed, the Bloodhound would cover a mile in just 3.6 seconds, with its wheels spinning at over 10,000 rpm!
According to the project, the vehicle is the most complicated car ever built, consisting of over 3,500 parts—the majority of which were designed and built specifically for this car. The vehicle is a mixture of car and aircraft technologies: the front is a carbon fiber monocoque similar to that of a Formula 1 car, with a nose cone made out of 3D-printed titanium. The back of the vehicle has the metallic framework and panels of an aircraft and includes deployable nylon drag chutes. The car is powered by both a jet engine and a rocket, which combine to produce more than 135,000 horsepower.
Thus far, the vehicle has reached over 500 mph in test runs. The Bloodhound will attempt to reach the full 1,000 mph on a purpose-built 18-kilometer-long track at the Hakskeen Pan desert location in South Africa.
Project Bloodhound has been praised for promoting public education in STEM subjects, having established a charity to get school children more involved in those areas of study. The project’s new owner has shown a keen interest in continuing this work.
“Having built a successful engineering business, I also know how hard it can be recruiting people with the right skills, and how important it is to inspire young people about science, technology, engineering and maths,” said Warhurst. “Bloodhound brings these subjects to life in the most exciting way possible.”
With a new round of funding, the Bloodhound may yet be able to reach that elusive 1,000 mph mark—while inspiring future engineers and scientists.
Read more about supercar technologies at Chinese Supercar Sets Lap Record.