Thin Diesel

A British backhoe manufacturer takes its new engine to an unlikely work site: Utah´s Bonneville Salt Flats

By Tom Colligan Posted 11.01.2006 at 2:00 am 0 Comments

by Andrew Ferraro Andrew Ferraro

Past owners of the notoriously wheezy diesel Rabbit will find it hard to believe, but this blurry streak is also powered by a four-cylinder diesel. Two of them actually: one for the front wheels and one for the rear. Built for use in front-loaders and forklifts, the 4.4-liter engines were specially tuned to 750 horsepower each by U.K. construction-equipment company JCB as part of an effort to set a new speed record for a diesel-powered car. It paid off. On August 23, Andy Green-holder of the current overall land-speed record of 763 mph-piloted the svelte, ice-cooled JCB Dieselmax to a new record in the Utah desert, averaging 350 mph in two 11-mile runs.

For a photo gallery from the record-breaking desert run, click here.

Previous Article: No, this Cadillac is Not a Prototype

Next Article: Michelin Tweel

Want to keep track of the latest concept cars, automotive innovations, and more? Subscribe to Popular Science today, for less than $1 per issue!