In 2005, heavy equipment manufacturer JCB set out to build the world’s fastest diesel land speed record vehicle and dubbed it the JCB Dieselmax. With a tuned 750hp tractor engine, 350mph could be achieved with an RAF pilot at the wheel. That was almost 20 years ago, but clearly, JCB still has that lunatic energy that we so desperately need in our lives. This is the JCB GT backhoe, the fastest of its kind ever built.
On first impressions alone, there’s not much indication of what kind of monster lurks under the hood of this JCB backhoe. In fact, it looks more ready to dig up a sand pit in a tight alley than it does to break quarter-mile records like a dragster. That is until you look at the front alloy wheels and hot rod flames painted on the side of the vehicle. “Wait a second,” people must be thinking while looking at this backhoe without context. “What the hell is fueling this thing?”
Well, that would be none other than a 580cc (9.5L) supercharged Chevy big-block V8, complete with a Crower performance crankshaft, Compstar connecting rods with Diamond pistons, and an absolutely massive Littlefield supercharger. It all comes together to throw over 1,000 horsepower to the GT’s massive rear wheels, still seemingly the same stock wheel and tire combination that the tractor might have come with.
In fact, the JCB GT is nothing new. The idea was first formulated by JCB in the late eighties as promotional material, similar to the Dieselmax project started a decade and a half later. For years, the JCG GT toured drag tracks and press events around the English-speaking world, most notably making its Australian debut at the 1990 Australian Grand Prix in Adelaide, a race won by Ayrton Senna. But for once that day, the funnest ride on the grounds wasn’t a Grand Prix car.
Thirty-three years have passed since then, but that hasn’t stopped JCB from taking the GT and completely restoring it inside and out, while also giving its undercarriage a much-needed makeover unique drive with all the juicy performance hardware. mentioned above. In this configuration, the JCB GT was able to set a quarter-mile time of 19.3 seconds at 54 mph. Need we remind you that this thing is construction equipment with a normal top speed of about 25 mph? Now, these are the kinds of improved stats that the average restaurateur could only dream of.
Kudos to the JCB team for creating another custom, classic and timeless build. There’s a plinth in a museum somewhere waiting for the JCB GT one day, ideally next to the Dieselmax.
