The Venturi VBB-3 is heading back to the Bonneville's desert in Utah, completing the finishing touches to its setup before appearing in the salt flats in August to attempt and claim the 600km/h speed record.
The electric vehicle has been raring for the chance to set a new world speed record for two years now but that dream eludes the Venturi team as bad weather conditions in the salt flats always got in its way. The world record attempts were always carried out within the same general period in the year but, in September 2013 and August 2014, a significant portion of Bonneville was covered in water, with the track too wet to safely use the VBB-3 in.
According to Roger Schroer, the one set to drive the VBB-3, the Venturi team overhauled the vehicle around the same time last year, learning a lot that have since then been applied to the vehicle. Now, the team is cycling through system checks to guarantee that the VBB-3 will be more than ready to set a new world speed record.
The VBB-3 has been on the track since May, with the Venturi team using the Transportation Research Center where Schroer works to test the vehicle and make improvements where needed.
"We were happy to learn that the suspension modifications this winter improved the car behavior," shared Schroer, adding that the Venturi team used the Vehicle Dynamics Area at the TRC to test and evaluate the vehicle's systems at relatively low speeds.
The VBB-3 driver said the vehicle is stable, based on tests carried out, but results so far were achieved in conditions using speeds under 160km/h. After these initial tests have shown what the vehicle can achieve at slower speeds, the Venturi team is now ready to hit the 7.5-mile oval track in the TRC to see how the VBB-3 would fare at higher speeds of about 321km/h.
The world speed record attempt is scheduled for August 17. Before that, the VBB-3 will be getting ready by participating in Speed Week on Aug. 12. Shroer is confident about the outcome as the vehicle's test runs last year were successful.
The VBB-3 is the third-generation iteration of the Venturi Buckeye Bullet. The current world speed record is held by Venturi and The Ohio State University's Center for Automotive Research. Since 2010, the world record top speed has been 515km/h.
Photo: Tony Webster | Flickr
