350.092 MpH (529km/h) – that is the new land speed record for a diesel-powered vehicle. Andy Green, a British RAF officer set this new landmark this morning with the JCB DieselMax. The vehicle is powered by two 4-cylinder diesel engines that deliver a peak power of 750hp and torque of 1500Nm at 2000 RPM. The engines are based on JBCs 444 engine, an industrial, common-rail injection diesel engine, which usually powers backhoes and other equipment.

In comparison, the fastest piston-engine car is currently Tom Burkland’s Streamliner, at 417 MpH (the official FIA record is 409.978 – set Aug 21, 1991 by Speed0Motive (source). The curent holder of the overall land speed record is ThrustSSC a jet-propelled land vehicle, which achieved 763 mph, or 1227 km/h on October 15, 1997. This was the first time a land vehicle broke the sound barrier.

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