JCB Hydromax Breaks World Hydrogen Land Speed Record
British engineering giant JCB has set a new hydrogen land speed record, with its hydrogen-powered JCB Hydromax reaching an average speed of 406.320 mph.
The car achieved 400.623 mph on its first run this morning across the Bonneville Salt Flats, then hit 412.135 mph on its second run, yielding an average of 406.320 mph and marking the fastest speed a hydrogen internal-combustion car has ever reached.
Wing Commander Andy Green OBE drove the twin-engined, 32-foot car through both runs required under FIA rules, completing one run in each direction within an hour. The team comfortably beat the previous FIA-officiated hydrogen internal-combustion benchmark of 185.5 mph, set by BMW's H2R in 2004. The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), motorsport's global governing body, must still officially ratify the record.
With this run, JCB Hydromax surpassed the 350.092 mph world diesel land speed record that JCB Dieselmax set on the same salt flats in August 2006, also with Green behind the wheel. Twenty years on, JCB has beaten its own benchmark using an engine that produces no CO₂ at the tailpipe.
The speed also beats the 303 mph hydrogen fuel cell mark, making JCB Hydromax the fastest hydrogen-powered vehicle of any kind in history.
JCB set the record in the Category A, Group XIV, Class 7 FIA World Flying Record Start Land Speed Record category, using two of its own production-based hydrogen digger engines. Together, these engines produce 1,600 bhp and come from JCB's engine factory in Foston, Derbyshire, UK. The same engines currently power JCB machines and equipment rolling off production lines in the UK as part of the company's £100 million hydrogen programme.
JCB Chairman Anthony Bamford has led the company's hydrogen engine project and first proposed a bid for a hydrogen world land speed record early last year. Lord Bamford said today: "Twenty years ago we came to Bonneville with JCB Dieselmax and showed what British engineering could do with diesel power. Today we have done it again — this time with hydrogen-powered engines. This record was set by production-based engines, the same engines powering JCB diggers right now. That is the point of JCB Hydromax: it shows hydrogen works, and it works today at the highest level with zero emissions."
Andy Green said: "Bonneville is the spiritual home of the world land speed record, and JCB Hydromax has just written itself into that history. The car was terrific — stable, strong and fast. Setting a world land speed record with hydrogen power, twenty years after Dieselmax, is a huge privilege. This record is a huge achievement by a world-class team and superb technology."
JCB Engineering Director Ryan Ballard, who leads the project, said: "This record belongs to the engineering team which took a hydrogen digger engine and made it the fastest of its kind on earth. This has been an amazing challenge from the outset, since it was set in February last year. We came here fully prepared, and the car delivered."
FIA President H.E. Mohammed Ben Sulayem said: "This is a truly historic milestone for motorsport, showcasing how innovation, performance, speed, and sustainability can go hand in hand. Motorsport has always been a catalyst for technological progress, pushing the boundaries of what is possible. This new land speed record continues this tradition, showcasing the potential of hydrogen combustion for sustainable mobility. For over 100 years, the FIA has proudly played a central role officiating land speed record attempts. I would like to thank our Member Club, the Automobile Competition Committee for the United States, for their support during this record attempt and offer my congratulations to Lord Bamford, Andy Green OBE, and to everyone involved in this remarkable achievement."
Wing Commander Andy Green holds the title of fastest man on earth at 763.035 mph, remains the only person to break the sound barrier on land, and drove JCB Dieselmax when it set the FIA world diesel land speed record of 350.092 mph at Bonneville in August 2006, a record that still stands today.
Last week, JCB Hydromax broke through the 368.347 mph barrier at the world's leading land speed racing event. The team completed the run as part of the Southern California Timing Association's (SCTA) renowned Bonneville Speed Week, setting a new SCTA record in the Blown Gas Streamliner class (AA/BGS, 500+ cubic inches) of 368.347 mph and marking a major milestone in the car's development programme.
This latest hydrogen land speed record arrives ahead of the opening of JCB's new $500 million factory in San Antonio, Texas, which will employ 1,500 people manufacturing machines for the US market. JCB has long pushed the limits of speed: alongside the JCB Dieselmax success, the JCB Fastrac became the world's fastest tractor at 135.191 mph in 2019, and the JCB GT set the backhoe loader record at 72.58 mph in 2014.