SSC North America
It’s been two years since SSC North America, America’s first hypercar company, unveiled the 1,750 hp Tuatara which they hoped to use to beat Hennessey, Koenigsegg, Bugatti, McLaren, and others, to the 300 mph top speed barrier.
That didn’t happen as the Bugatti Chiron became the first hypercar to break the 300 mph barrier in late 2019, reaching a top speed of 304.773 mph.
However, this past weekend, SSC North America did something even cooler. They took back world’s fastest production vehicle title when its Tuatara hitting an eye-popping 331.15 mph with professional racing driver Oliver Webb behind the wheel.
“It’s been ten years since we held this record with our first car, the Ultimate Aero, and the Tuatara is leagues ahead. Its performance reflects the dedication and focus with which we pursued this achievement,” said Jerod Shelby, CEO of SSC. “We came pretty close to meeting the theoretical numbers, which is astonishing to do in a real world setting on a public road. America’s new claim to victory in the ‘land-based space race’ is going to be tough to beat.”
Webb pushed the SSC Tuatara to an average speed of 316.11 mph (508.73 km/h) following two consecutive high-speed test runs of 301.07 mph (484.53 km/h) and 331.15 mph (532.93 km/h). In accordance with record criteria, the Tuatara traveled in opposite directions, clocking its speeds within one hour, to break the world record for “Fastest Production Vehicle.”
SSC North America
Officials were on site to verify all world record criteria was met — including review of Dewetron GPS measurements, which tracked the speed runs using an average of 15 satellites — and to confirm the new record.
“There was definitely more in there. And with better conditions, I know we could have gone faster,” said Webb. “As I approached 331 mph, the Tuatara climbed almost 20 mph within the last five seconds. It was still pulling well. As I told Jerod, the car wasn’t running out of steam yet. The crosswinds are all that prevented us from realizing the car’s limit.”
The SSC Tuatara also broke the record for Fastest Flying Mile on a Public Road at 313.12 mph (503.92 km/h), Fastest Flying Kilometer on a Public Road at 321.35 mph (517.16 km/h), and Highest Speed Achieved on a Public Road at 331.15 mph (532.93 km/h).
That’s right. They broke these records on Nevada State Route 160 just outside of Las Vegas near Pahrump.
And I have to tell you, it didn’t even look that hard. Watch…
Looked like he was just out for a Sunday drive and yet, Webb hit 331 mile per hour! Amazing.
U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!
SSC North America
SSC North America
SSC North America
SSC North America
SSC North America
SSC North America
SSC North America
SSC North America