The World's Fastest Production Car: The SSC Tuatara

The SSC Tuatara is a hypercar that has been making waves in the automotive world with its impressive speed and engineering feats. The car, which was announced at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in 2019, boasts a carbon fiber body and monocoque chassis, weighing just 2,750 pounds. Its power comes from a 5.9-liter twin turbocharged V8 engine, producing an astonishing 1,750 horsepower and 1,341 pound-feet of torque when running on E85.

One of the most notable features of the Tuatara is its ability to shift gears in less than 100 milliseconds, thanks to its seven-speed robotized manual transmission. This allows the car to accelerate quickly and smoothly, making it a formidable opponent on the track. The Tuatara's engine runs smoothly at its 8,800 RPM redline, with the help of a water pump booster to assist pushing coolant to the forward radiators.

The price of this engineering achievement is $1.6 million, which can almost buy two bedrooms in Las Vegas. On paper, everything seems to check out, and it's easy to see why the Tuatara is considered one of the fastest production cars on the market. However, things took a dramatic turn when SSC released a video of the car doing a speed run on a stretch of closed road in Nevada.

The first run, which was done in both directions, showed the Tuatara achieving an astonishing 301.07 miles per hour. However, it was during the second run that the car's speed reached an incredible 331.15 miles per hour. This seemed like a giant leap, especially when compared to the previous record holder, and many viewers were left questioning whether the video was an honest representation of the Tuatara's performance.

Most of the time when a speed record is broken, the new record holder only improves on the previous records by a few miles per hour, maybe 10 miles at best. However, in this instance, the Tuatara's average speed of 316 miles per hour absolutely demolished the previous record holder by 38.2 miles per hour. This seemed almost impossible, and viewers online began to raise their eyebrows.

As the doubters started to speak out, momentum began to build around the question of whether the video was an honest interpretation of the SSC's performance. Even some notable YouTubers began their own investigations, with Shmee breaking down where the issues with the video started using Google maps. He calculated the distances between the medians on the stretch of road that SSC used and compared the time it took for the car to pass those points to the telemetry data that SSC was showing on screen.

The discrepancy in the telemetry data created even more doubt among viewers, leading many to wonder whether the video was fake or if there was something fishy going on. Even worse, Engineering Explained's Jason had a video where he ran his own calculations and came to the conclusion that the car actually only reached 240 miles per hour, which is obviously well short of the 331 that SSC initially claimed.

Two separate people who have studied the video and made calculations about the Tuatara's actual speed came to the same conclusion: the visual depiction of the run and the GPS data did not match. This was not a good look for SSC, as it showed that they were not entirely truthful with their claims. These are smart people, smarter than me even, and I know you're looking at me like "this is crazy."

The controversy surrounding the Tuatara's speed record has sparked a lot of debate and discussion among car enthusiasts and experts alike. While some have come to the conclusion that the video was fake or manipulated, others believe that there must be more to the story. Whatever the truth may be, it's clear that the SSC Tuatara is an incredible machine that has captured the imagination of many.

Despite the controversy surrounding its speed record, the SSC Tuatara remains one of the most impressive production cars on the market. Its combination of power, acceleration, and engineering prowess make it a formidable opponent on the track. Whether or not its speed record is legitimate, the Tuatara is undoubtedly an achievement to be admired.

The price of this incredible machine may seem steep at $1.6 million, but for many car enthusiasts, it's a small price to pay for the opportunity to own one of the fastest production cars in the world. The SSC Tuatara is more than just a car - it's a statement piece that demands attention and respect.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en- It should come as nosurprise that we hereat donut are big fans of top speed runs.I especially loved whenBugatti hit 253 miles per hourin their iconic Veyron,and then broke the 300 mileper hour mark in a modifiedpre-production version of the Chiron.So it was pretty mind blowing when I heardabout a new speed runclaiming a production cardid a whopping 331 miles per hour.(electronic music)An automotive manufacturednamed SSC North America showcasetheir hypercar called Tuatara.When the company releaseda video of its speed run,claiming a top speed that seems to betearing at the laws ofphysics as we know them.You ever heard of generalrelativity it's by this artistnamed Einstein. Youprobably never heard of him.However, this video has createda ton of controversy online.After some people started takinga closer look at the video,very quickly, things started to unravel.Suddenly viewers all over the internetwere claiming that it was faked.- Why is this video not what it seems?- The GPS speed seems sodifferent from being visual speed.- SSC denied these claims, of course,but let's unpack thesequences of events thatled to this controversy.What was the catalystthat sparked debate amongviewers of the video?What kind of investigation wasdone to back up their claimsand how did SSC handle thebacklash? Most importantly,how fast did the car actually go?(electronic music)- Thank you to Nord VPN forsponsoring today's video.Using a VPN to browse theinternet safely is one thing,but using Nord VPN,lets you do so much more.For the computer illiterate, don't worry.Nord VPN is easy to use.Connect with one click orenable auto connect for zeroclick protection. And don'tstress about which software itruns on Windows, Android,iOS, Mac OS, and Linux.Even your Android TV supports Nord VPN.For the world travelers out there Nord VPNgives you access everywhere.So you don't miss a minuteof your favorite show.It's what I use to watch shows exclusivelyon Netflix in Japan.Plus nor VPN encrypts all your trafficso your internet provider can't slow downyour streaming speed. Oh, suck it ISPs.And for all you gamers,don't let your location limitwhere you play games securelyand avoid DDOS attacks thatsignificantly slow down yourconnection and blockmalware ridden websites.See Nord VPN has something for everybody.For everyone!To upgrade your online experiencego to nordvpn.com/donutordvpnto get a two year plan plus fouradditional months with a huge discount.They just giving it away, pretty much.Now let's get back to the show.(dinging tone music)- Before we get to thespeed running question,we need to get some background info.Unless you're a car nerd like myself,you've probably never heard ofSSC North America before andthat's okay. To be fair. America doesn'treally have a bunch of household supercarbrands like Europe doeswith Bugatti, McLaren,Ferrari, Konigsegg, et cetera.So before we get the controversy,let's discuss the originsof SSC North America.(soft guitar music)Formerly known as ShelbySupercars SSC North America is anAmerican automobile manufacturerthat was founded by JaredShelby. And before you ask, no,he is not related to theautomotive legend, Carol Shelby.When Jared was a kid,he used to compete in kartingand actually traveled acrossthe country to compete.Unsurprisingly, this fueledhis passion for the supercars that were coming out ofEurope and dreamed that oneday he could build the perfectsupercar himself. When he got older,he became a mechanicalengineer for a medical devicecompany he co-founded calledAdvanced Imaging Technology where hemanaged aspects of themechanical and ergonomic design.And finally, in 1998,he made the leap andfounded SSC North America inRichland, Washington.During the early stages of the company,they are focused heavilyon creating a bespokeAmerican-made supercar to breakinto the high-performance market.You may remember theirfirst effort called theUltimate Aero and for an upstart company,it's fair to say that this was a prettydamn impressive first attempt.The 1200 horsepowermonster, famously beat theBugatti Veyron's initialproduction speed recordof 253 when it hit 256.18 miles per hour,which was verified by theGuinness Book of World Records in 2007.It is immensely difficultfor an upstart brand just tocompete, let alone, knockdown a titan like Bugatti,who might I remind you isowned by VW one of the largestautomotive manufacturers in the world.It was a true David beatsGoliath moment for SSC.Eventually Bugatti struck back with theVeyron Super Sport, whichaveraged an incredible267.9 miles per hour on two runs in 2010.A couple of years have paSSCdand several other cars hadcome and gone taking and passingthe mantle of the world'sfastest production car. Keento get back on the fray,SSC in 2012 began developmentof their next generation supercar.Then in 2019 at the PebbleBeach Concours d'EleganceSSC announced the Tuatara.(electronic music)The SSC Tuatara is a hypercararmed with some neck snappingstats. It has a carbon fiberbody and carbon fiber monocoquechassis.So the car only weighs 2,750pounds and is powered by a 5.9liter twin turbocharged V8pushing out 1,750 horsepower and1,341 pound feet of torquewhen running on E85.That corn juice.To put that in perspective,the Tuatara is lighter than a BRZ,but with nine times the horsepower.Insane.SSC did a ton of work to ensure thatthe engine runs smoothly at it's8,800 RPM redline byplacing a water pump boosterin the nose of the car to assist pushingthe coolant to the forward radiators.The car also has a seven speedrobotized manual transmission.Meaning the clutch and gearselection are electronicallyoperated. Constrainingthe hydraulic drivencomponents and sensors are producinghigh force engagement.All this results in a car that canshift gears in less than 100 milliseconds.Snappy af.With all that out of the way,we can get the price of thisengineering achievement,which sits at $1.6 million.Ooh, that can almost buy atwo bedroom in Las Villas.So far everything seemsto check out, right?This has all the makings of anincredible machine that coulddo 300 plus pretty easy, right?(record scratching)Well, we wouldn't be makingthis video if that was true.Things began to spiral downwards for SSCstarting in October of 2020,when SSC released a video ofthe Tuatara doing a speed runon a stretch of closedroad on Nevada highway 160.That day SSC did tworuns in both directions,which is standard procedurefor top speed runs.And the first run,the Tuatara did 301.07 miles per hour.During the second run,the video showed the carachieved an astonishing 331.15miles per hour.Now here's where the doubtersstarted to raise theireyebrows.Most of the time when a speedrecord like this is achieved,the new record holder onlyimproves the previous recordspeed by a few miles perhour, maybe 10 miles at best.In this instance though,the Tuatara average of 316 miles per hour,absolutely demolished theprevious record holder by 38.2miles per hour.This giant leap seemed almostimpossible. And I'm not theonly one that thought that.Viewers online and in thecomments, looked at the video,claiming that SSC tampered withit to give the illusion thatTuatara was going at the speed at claimed.Once the initial doubters spoke out,momentum began to buildaround the question,whether the video was an honestinterpretation of the SSCsperformance.Even some notable YouTubersbegan their own investigations.Shmee, for example,had a video breaking downwhere the issues with the videostarted. Using Google maps,he calculated the distancesbetween the medians on thestretch of road SSC used,and then compared the time ittook and the video for the carto pass the medians to thetelemetry data that SSC wasshowing on screen to make along and mathematically densestory short.The telemetry data that SSCdisplayed was showing that theTuatara traveled faster thanwhat the actual video wasshowing.That's weird.This discrepancy created evenmore doubt among viewers thatthe video wasn't an honestdepiction of the run and that therun was fake. Even worse,our boy, Jason from Engineering Explained,had a video where heran his own calculation.- Hello everyone. And welcome.- That's a lot of equations there, buddy.And he came to the conclusionthat the car actually onlyreached 240 miles per hour,which is obviously well shortof the 331 that SSC initiallyclaimed. Two separate peoplethat have studied the video andmade calculations about theTuatara's actual speed came tothe same conclusion.Which was that the visualdepiction of the run and the GPSdata did not match.This was not a good lookfor SSC and mind you,these are smart people,smarter than me even.I know you look at me, you're like,"dang that guy's gotglasses. So he's smart."That's not true.I just can't see well.So, what did they have to sayabout all the controversy?Understandably SSC came outand stated that their initialclaims were accurateand said that they usedDewetrons equipment to track the runs.And even said that it receiveda letter from Dewetron onOctober 22nd,that confirmed the quoteaccuracy of the equipmentand speed sensors they had supplied SSC.Dewetron is an Austrian basedmanufacturer of test andmeasurement systems.This seems like a prettyreasonable and sturdy response tothe allegations that theyfaked to run. However,things got even worse for SSCwhen Dewetron themselves cameout and released a statementsaying the following. Quote,"Dewetron did not validateany data from the world recordattempts or proceeding tests.Nobody of Dewetron's employees."I apologize. The quote continues,"Nobody of Dewetron's employeeswas present during the testdrive or involved in theassociated preparation."They continue, "Since theresults of the measurement datahighly rely on the right setupon the regular calibration ofthe systems and sensors inuse as well as many otherparameters,we are not able to guaranteethe accuracy or correctness ofthe outcome." Ouch.The Dewetron equipment wasthe cornerstone of SSC defenseof their speed run.And shortly after Dewetronreleased a statementSSC finally came out andadmitted that the video they hadinitially released was incorrect.At face value that run hadtwo major errors. First,they did not have Dewetronemployees on locationto certify that their equipmentwas installed and functioning correctly atthe time of the run. And secondly,they did not take special careto make sure that the videoof the run was displaying thecorrect visual information.And didn't even double-checkbefore posting it online.So it is difficult to be certainwhether SSC really did makethose mistakes or if SSC reallythought that they could foolthe public because those kindsof mistakes are borderlinecomically careless.Or is it possible that theemployees of SSC North Americawere so obseSSCd with their work,that they fell victimto confirmation bias.Resulting in themaccepting whatever resultsthey found and chose not to double-check.I guess we'll never know.(electronic hip-hop music)After some time paSSCd,SSC did another run in Januaryof this year at the JohnnyBohmer proving grounds atthe Kennedy space center inFlorida. And this time they came prepared,they had RACELOGIC onsite to measure the run.They even had Life Racing,Garmin, and the IMRA all show up.They all agreed thatRACELOGIC's Vbox is the mostrespective measurement tooland use that for the run.However,SSC still had several redundantsystems in the car just incase they messed up.So far, so good, right?So how'd it perform?Well,the Tuatara hit 279.7 milesper hour on its northbound runand to 286.1 miles per houron it's southbound run.And the average of those tworuns is 282.9 miles per hour.Good enough to break theprior record, 277.87.Therefore setting the record forthe world's fastest production car.But still SSC wasn't satisfiedand wanting to attempt to runagain, except disaster struckwhile being transported.The Tuatara was heavily damagedin Utah while on its wayto Florida.After the enclosed trailerflipped due to intense winds.That's a pretty painful endto this chapter of SSC'sjourney.(trumpet music)The road Jared Shelby had totake to get SSC North Americato where it is today was prettylong and particularly tough,but I'm glad they made it.No one can argue that the SSC Tuatara,isn't a fun little car.We're talking about a car thatis faster than the BugattiVeyron however its legacyis at risk of being forevertainted by the speed run controversy.Unless Jared Shelby and SSCNorth America actually achievesits goal.It'll only be remembered as thecar that didn't go 331 milesper hour. And that's a real shame.So get there. You guys can do it.- Show your support forAmerica's favorite off-roader andAmerica's favorite off-road team with thebrand new hi team t-shirt.- I think he means the low team t-shirt- And I said America'sfavorite off-roader andoff-road team hi team.- Yeah, low team. That's what.- High team?- Low team,low team.- Nolan, people only likeyou guys, ironically,- I don't think that's true, James.- Dude, this is a classyshirt. It's black it's sleek.We're like the heroes orthe Mighty Ducks, the Hawks.- If you'd like a littlemore lighthearted fair.The low team t-shirt comesin this beautiful light bluecolor, letting people know that you'rea easy going fellow or lady.- Well, whichever teamyou want to represent,whether it's high team or the wrong team.They're all available atdonamedia.com for $29.98,which is so much cheaper than $30.- So much, so much cheaper James.Thank you very much forwatching this episode.If you like supercar content,we've talked a lot about themin the past couple months.Put some videos down here.If you liked this video,go ahead and hit that likebutton. Thank you very much.That's all I ask follow donut,all social media at donut media. Follow me@nolanjsykes. Be kind,I'll see you next time.