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SSC Tuatara Will Have Second Go at World’s Top Speed Record After Controversy

October was a very tough month for SSC North America, the maker of the self-proclaimed world’s fastest production car, the SSC Tuatara. SSC North America is now ready to put that behind it and look forward to the future – with a second attempt at the top speed world record.
Jerod Shelby announces SSC North America's plan to re-do the speed record attempt with the SSC Tuatara 8 photos
Photo: YouTube / SSC North America
SSC Tuatara on October 10, 2020, when it allegedly set a new world record for top speed on a production carSSC Tuatara on October 10, 2020, when it allegedly set a new world record for top speed on a production carSSC Tuatara on October 10, 2020, when it allegedly set a new world record for top speed on a production carSSC Tuatara on October 10, 2020, when it allegedly set a new world record for top speed on a production carSSC Tuatara on October 10, 2020, when it allegedly set a new world record for top speed on a production carSSC Tuatara on October 10, 2020, when it allegedly set a new world record for top speed on a production carSSC Tuatara on October 10, 2020, when it allegedly set a new world record for top speed on a production car
After the controversy around the first attempt, which led SSC North America to declare the Tuatara the world’s fastest production car, Jerod Shelby says there’s no way left for the company to remove absolutely all doubts from the public’s mind about it being legitimate. He dropped the ball in the way that record-setting run was put together and documented, by both not having equipment from several GPS companies and their people on the ground.

That’s a huge ball to drop, to be sure. When you’re making such a bold claim as having the world’s fastest production car, it’s always best to err on the safe side in terms of checking all the boxes. Shelby failed to do that on the first run, which resulted in the footage of the alleged record run being challenged online by gearheads and Internet sleuths.

They were right to do so, Shelby says, as much as it pains him to admit. Looking at their videos, he sees the data SSC North America offered didn’t add up, so the blame is only his.

There is no fixing that mess, he says of the conclusion he came to. So, instead of trying to fix what can be never be made fully right again, he’s decided to give the record another go. This time, by using all he’s learned from the first experience in terms of what mistakes not to make.

“We have to re-run the record. We have to do this again and do it in a way that is undeniable and irrefutable,” Shelby says in the first video below. To that end, they will be using equipment from different GPS companies, they will have their people on the ground to check that the equipment is properly handled and set up, and they will have several independent parties present – including three of the YouTubers who challenged the first run.

Shelby’s message is clear: he messed up, but plans to make it right. When you’re going for Bugatti and Koenigsegg’s crown, and plan to sell your hypercar at $1.9+ million, you don’t really have any other option.

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About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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