Multi-Million Dollar Bloodhound SSC Land Speed Record Project Runs Out of Cash
Designers hoped the Bloodhound SSC would use jet and rocket propulsion to crack 1,000 mph, but it’ll be doing zero now that money has run out.
A privately-financed bid for the world land speed record has come to a halt with funding exhausted.
Britain-based Bloodhound Programme Limited was developing a car called the Bloodhound SSC in an effort to raise the record from 763 mph—set by Andy Green in the ThrustSSC in 1997—to over 1,000 mph. To achieve this, Bloodhound constructed its vehicle from the ground up around a Eurojet EJ200 turbofan, two of which power the Eurofighter Typhoon jet fighter. Its thrust was planned to be augmented by a trio of rocket motors to assist with reaching its four-digit top speed, but despite the car being effectively complete, Bloodhound doesn't have enough money to pursue the record any further.
"You're going to need to find a few million to get it running to full speed," explained world land speed record holder and would-be Bloodhound pilot Andy Green to the BBC. "We have basically completed the main structure, the desert is ready, we just need the funding."
Green told the publication that the multimillion-dollar Bloodhound SSC is now on the market for a paltry £250,000 GBP, or about $318,000 USD.
"If somebody is out there with a quarter of a million, there is a car there. There is still a chance that Bloodhound could run," Green continued. "As far as Christmas presents go, that's the one I'd like."
Bloodhound's financial troubles became public knowledge in October when the program went into administration, announcing that it needed nearly $33 million more to complete its bid for the land speed record.
"Despite overwhelming public support, and engagement with a wide range of potential and credible investors, it has not been possible to secure a purchaser for the business and assets," added administrator Andrew Sheridan, one of the people tasked with finding a purchaser for the defunct program's assets. "We will now work with key stakeholders to return the third-party equipment and then sell the remaining assets of the company to maximize the return for creditors."