Vampire jet car sponsored by Arnold Clark Autoparts

The Vampire jet car, holder of the UK land speed record, is returning to exhibition events nationwide with sponsorship from Arnold Clark Autoparts.

National motor factor Arnold Clark Autoparts’ branding appears on the jet car, which currently holds a record for averaging 303 miles per hour in its record attempt.

Craig McCracken, group factor manager at Arnold Clark Autoparts, said: “We’re delighted to provide support to the Vampire jet car project and to have such an iconic example of raw speed able to be exhibited to crowds across the country again.

“Hundreds of hours have been put into restoring the car and we’re really looking forward to seeing it again at shows such as the Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford, where it’ll appear alongside Red Arrows aircraft – something the Vampire has shared an engine with!”

The car is also well-known for appearing on BBC Top Gear in 2006, where presenter Richard Hammond suffered a high-speed crash driving the Vampire whilst filming for a land speed record attempt.

The car was mothballed following the accident but with the project being purchased by a syndicate from Herefordshire in 2019, work began to painstakingly rebuild the car. New sponsorship now allows the finished dragster to appear at popular shows across the UK, such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the Air Tattoo, and Dragstalgia, at the car’s spiritual home of Santa Pod.

Vampire is 8.5 metres long, and is fitted with a Rolls Royce Orpheus 101 engine, also fitted to the Red Arrows Gnat aircraft, and fitted with an afterburner from a SEPECAT Jaguar jet. Vampire’s low weight of 910 kilograms means a power to weight ratio of 3:1, delivering an equivalent of 12,000 horsepower.