The JCB Hydromax has officially set a new land speed record for hydrogen-fuelled vehicles, achieving a two-way average speed of 406.320mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. Wing Commander Andy Green was at the controls for the record-breaking run.
The streamliner was built by JCB, the construction equipment manufacturer, specifically to break this record. The car is based on the design of the JCB Dieselmax, which set the diesel land speed record in 2006. The Hydromax uses a pair of modified 4.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engines, closely related to the ones the construction equipment manufacturer uses in its existing hydrogen combustion diggers, producing a total of 1,600bhp and 2,600lb ft of torque.
A New Benchmark for Hydrogen Power
The previous record for hydrogen combustion cars was set in 2004 by the BMW H2R, which reached a two-way average of 185.5mph. The Hydromax has more than doubled that speed. The record also surpasses the 303.9mph benchmark set by hydrogen fuel cell EVs by the Buckeye Bullet 2 in 2009. During the early testing phase at RAF Wittering, the Hydromax was already getting close to the BMW H2R’s figure on the taxiways.
For JCB, this achievement also means breaking its own previous record. The Hydromax has comfortably surpassed the 350mph mark set by the Dieselmax two decades ago. This demonstrates a significant leap in performance for alternative-fuelled vehicles. The record was set with production-based engines, the same engines powering JCB diggers right now.
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JCB Chairman Praises Production-Based Technology
JCB chairman Anthony Bamford highlighted the significance of using production-based engines. He stated that the record was set with the same engines currently powering JCB’s hydrogen-powered diggers.
Bamford said, “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 engines powered by hydrogen. That is the point of JCB Hydromax: it shows hydrogen works, and it works today at the highest level with zero emissions.” The record is yet another to add to the tally of Andy Green, who still remains the outright land speed record holder, and the only person in history to have broken the sound barrier on land, with the 763mph set by the ThrustSSC jet car in 1997.
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.” Currently a freelance journalist, Mike previously worked full-time for Car Throttle as a staff writer between 2024 and 2026.
