Not long ago, the Internet was abuzz with the news of an incredible speed achievement. SSC had driven its Tuatara to wild speeds. We’re talking a top speed of 331 miles per hour in one direction and then a 301 mph run in the other. That would translate to an average of 316 mph and a new world record for a production car. There’s multi-angle video showing the run and it’s served up in high-definition right on your screen. And that, friends, is where the problem starts.
Youtuber Shmee, best known for his never-ending parade of sports and supercar ownership, has published a video that looks to question the validity of the Tuatara high-speed run. And Shmee isn’t just tossing out accusations here. Instead, he sets out to question this whole thing using actual math. There are clear points on the road where this run takes place, and calculating time in the video to cover these distances helps him arrive at speed figures below what the car should be doing.
It’s not just the video though, as Shmee also calls out the actual mechanical capability of the car. The gear ratios are known as is the engine redline and tire size. That means we can determine what this car should be capable of running. And once again the math does not add up.
To add to this, Misha and Robert from Apex Taxi at the Nürburgring have a video that examines the run in the same manner as Shmee’s video:
Initially, there was word that the GPS data company utilized to capture the hard data for SSC was stepping up to claim the record as valid. But SSC has since issued an update to the story. It says that the video used doesn’t depict the accurately tracked record-setting run. That’s a fair statement, as an on-site video team would be capturing a wealth of footage from an event like this. CarThrottle has spoken to the driver Oliver Webb and SSC independently and is bringing more information from both sides of the table.
SSC says that the gear ratios used by Misha, Robert, and Shmee aren’t accurate. It’s since released information on the gearing it says is in their car, which would support the claims of a shot at the speeds discussed.
There’s also talk of raw onboard footage being released. And proper verification of the GPS data would go along way to eradicating talk that this record isn’t on the up and up. We hope this is a case of bad choices in footage and not an attempt at falsely laying claim to a wild performance speed record. But the math and diligence of checking up on this is important.
I mean, it is if you care about this. SSC should definitely be held accountable here though, and good on Misha, Robert, Shmee, and CarThrottle for doing just that.
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