Yahoo Autos Going Supersonic in a Car Looks Utterly Terrifying
Back in 1997, the Thrust SSC broke the record for world's fastest car at 760.035 mph, becoming the only car to break the sound barrier. In this latest video released by the Bloodhound SSC team, driver Andy Green explains just how the record - which still stands today - went down.
Setting a world speed record isn't as easy as just hitting the go pedal and holding on. As Green tells us, at speeds over 650 mph, the staggered tire setup of the Thrust SSC was offset enough that he had to input up to 90 degrees of steering angle to keep it going straight. At one point, he even had to lift off the throttle and correct the car to keep it from going off-line. That doesn't sound like something I'd like to be doing at those speeds.
Then there's getting the car to a stop. It's not as simple as just jabbing the brake pedal - there's a whole process full of steps needed to bring the Thrust SSC to a halt without damaging the extremely hot engines.
The Bloodhound SSC team hopes to shatter the Thrust's 20-year old record sometime in 2018 with a 1000-mph run. We can't wait to see how it performs.
via Jalopnik
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