WHAT’S NEW
running at much less than that. JCB worked with engine
experts Ricardo to realise more of the potential. A new,
larger turbocharger was accompanied by water injection
and charge-air cooling through ice tanks, reduced intake
temperatures by 50°C. An electrically driven supercharger
system was again used, while a revised exhaust manifold
contributed to improved fl ow. The adoption of a
sophisticated anti-lag system would also keep the larger
turbocharger delivering its maximum boost pressure
while gear changes took place. The result of the
powertrain improvements was a peak output of 1,016hp
at 3,150rpm, and over 2,500Nm of torque.
Fastrac Two’s driveline was also updated to cope.
A multi-plate wet clutch was developed to improve torque
management and create smoother gear changes for the
six-speed manual transmission. Work was also done
testing the BKT tyres with a specialist company in
Germany to make sure they could withstand higher
speeds. The tyres were also equipped with sensors that
also monitor heat and vibration in real-time.
Setting the new record
Driver Guy Martin is impressed by the fact that the tractor
had been signifi cantly improved in just four months since
he last drove it, by JCB’s specialist team. “The last time at
103.6mph we ran out of horsepower and I didn’t know
how JCB could get it going much faster. But the
differences in the detailing and workmanship are
incredible,” he says.
Martin had to drive the tractor in both directions of the
10,000-feet long (3.048km) runway and average
measurements were made over a 1km length in the
middle. Originally, the attempt had been scheduled for the
afternoon, but it had to be brought forward as torrential
rain and high winds were forecast. Even at 10.30am, the
runway was slippery from rain, which affected Martin’s
ability to run through the gears.
“It was fi ne in fourth and fi fth gear, but it wanted to get
lively in third gear, so I had to back out and let her gather,”
he said. Despite the weather, Martin felt he had neared the
limit of the tractor’s capacity. “We nearly reached terminal
velocity at that speed. If we’d had another half a mile of
track, we might have got another 2 or 3mph only, so we
pushed it almost to the limit,” he said.
The team of nine young engineers with an average age
of 27, who worked on the vehicle, will now be disbanded.
“One beautiful thing about this project was the exposure
that our apprentices got to very experienced heads of
specialist areas,” says Rodney Hitch, engineering manage,
on the JCB High Speed Tractor Programme. “They’ll now
disperse into different parts of the business and start
becoming the engineering leaders of the future.” But if
another tractor defeats the JCB time, there’s every
chance Fastrac team could be reassembled quickly to
produce Fastrac Three…
The record runs were shown on the Channel 4
documentary, World’s Fastest Tractor, fi rst screened on
November 17 in the UK
To read more about the Fastrac’s fi rst record breaking
run, see the September 2019 edition of iVT, available for
free in digital format at www.ivtinternational.com
Water injection accompanies
new, larger turbocharger
Charge air cooling
through ice tanks
Revised exhaust manifold
for improved fl ow
The modifi ed 7.2l JCB DieselMax
engine was able to deliver
a real-world 1,016hp at 3,150rpm,
and over 2,500Nm of torque
iVTInternational.com November 2019 9
/www.ivtinternational.com
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