McMurtry Spiering broke the Goodwood Hill Climb record

At the 2021 Goodwood Festival of Speed, the British company McMurtry debuted its small (only 126 inches long) but powerful electric The company debuted the "Spearing" circuit car. It can generate more than 4,400 pounds of downforce at rest (previously 1,100 pounds).

But can it actually be demonstrated on the track? The answer is a resounding "yes," as revealed last weekend at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England. McMurtry participated in the event's Sunday Shootout hill climb and not only won, but also set a record.

With Max Chilton, former Formula 1 driver and now head of development at Spearing, at the wheel, the downsized Batmobile blasted up the hill in just 39.08 seconds. The previous record for the 1.16-mile hill climb around the Goodwood House grounds was 39.9 seconds, set in 2019 by Romain Dumas in his 670-horsepower Volkswagen ID.R Time Attack Special. Given the shortness of the course, the time difference between the two is nothing short of amazing.

What makes the Sperling, developed as a technology demonstrator, so fast is the combination of high horsepower, low weight, low drag, and of course, tremendous downforce. The powertrain consists of two electric motors that drive the rear wheels, and these motors are powered by a 60 kilowatt-hour battery.

McMurtry has not revealed the power of the Spearing, but claims that it has about 1 horsepower per 2.2 pounds of vehicle weight. He claims the car weighs less than 2,200 pounds.

Performance claims include 0-60 mph in less than 1.5 seconds and a top speed of 150 mph, the latter limited by the transmission setup McMurtry used for the hill climb. Typically, top speeds exceed 200 mph.

"The almost constant downforce is an innovative feature as a driver," Chilton said prior to the run.

"In this year's test, I had to adapt my driving style to maximize performance.

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