A historic car fitted with a huge jet engine that once reached a world record 600mph has sold – for over £1M.
The Spirit of America Sonic I was up for sale for the very first time.
It set the world land speed record driven by racing legend Craig Breedlove in 1965.
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Breedlove’s sleek craft was propelled across Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats solely by a GE J79 turbojet from an F-4 Phantom II interceptor.
The four-wheeled Sonic I was built around a Coke bottle-shaped fuselage body over 34 feet in length with 15,000 pounds of thrust with afterburner.
Goodyear, the effort’s major sponsor, provided special tires for the forged aluminium wheels, as well as disc brakes with an aerospace-style drag chute that provided additional stopping power.
The cockpit even incorporated an onboard air-supply system for the driver.
On 15 November 1965, Breedlove broke the land speed record in it after reaching an incredible 600.601mph.
He was the first man to cross the 600mph threshold, as reported by Luxury Auto News.
Breedlove’s wife, Lee, subsequently became the fastest woman alive when she drove the Sonic I to 308.506mph.
Although Breedlove planned further land speed record attempts none came to fruition.
His 1965 record stood until October 1970.
Spirit of America Sonic I was acquired by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum in 1975.
It was auctioned by RM Sotheby’s.
The listing states: “Sonic I has been exhibited occasionally including at the Daytona International Speedway in 1980 and at the then-newly opened Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California in 1995 and remains a visually commanding and technologically fascinating piece of speed record history.
“Available for private acquisition for the very first time since its creation, Craig Breedlove’s Spirit of America Sonic I would be a monumental addition to any collection with a focus on speed and its pursuit.
“It is a unique testament to American ingenuity and the product of an optimistic era in which anything seemed possible – with the records to prove that on the Bonneville Salt Flats just about anything was.”
It sold for £1,026050 to an undisclosed buyer.
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