For decades the claim has been made that Formula 1 cars can generate enough downforce to drive upside down – at least at high speed.
However, the first car to actually do so is said to be an electric hypercar that continues to blitz almost every record it attempts to break.
The McMurtry Speirling now boasts the unique claim of being the world’s only vehicle to drive upside down, and it didn’t need to be travelling at high speed to do it.
Two fans underneath its floor can generate up to 2000kg of downforce, helping the car stick to the ground at any speed.
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With the Speirling parked on a platform, it was rotated 180-degrees and managed to stay stuck to the floor – or roof, as it became.
To make the feat even more impressive, McMurtry co-founder and managing director Thomas Yates drove the Speirling forwards on the platform, apparently classifying it as an official driving record.
Though the Speirling can’t be registered and driven on the road, McMurtry is planning to build 100 examples, all of which will undoubtedly be the fastest vehicles at any track day they’re allowed to enter.
After setting a record time at the Goodwood hill climb in 2022, the Speirling last week became the fastest car ever around the famed Top Gear test track.
Its time of 55.9 seconds was more than three seconds quicker than a 2004 Renault Formula 1 car, though the latter completed its lap in greasy conditions.
The McMurtry Speirling is powered by two electric motors on the rear axle, producing up to 745kW in a car which weighs less than 1000kg, and is aided by its huge under-floor fans.
