10 Favourite Goodwood Hill Climbs

The loudest, weirdest and coolest Goodwood cars of all time

Goodwood Festival of Speed is an amazing event. From the blaring car noises that’s like music to our ears, to the spectacular cars that are a true sight to behold. The main attraction for most is the legendary and highly esteemed hill climb event where cars of all shapes, sizes, ages and speeds make their way up the iconic country road.

With the immeasurable amount of cars climbing the hill each year, it can be easy to forget the details. So, we’ve compiled our 10 favourite hill climbs (in no particular order) for your own delightful consumption.

An ancient 4-wheeled relic

Let’s start off with the 1905 Darracq land speed record car. Yes, you did read that right, this car is over 110 years old! The ancient (but restored) banger was souped up to 200 horsepower and as it passed the crowd it produced that classic “chugging” sound you’d expect from a grisly old motor like this.

The Darracq was manned by two people and had spectators grinding their teeth due to the fact that it looked like it was never made to go round a course at such speed! With skinny bicycle tyres, nobody and no seatbelts, we can understand why…

Nissan Juke RS Nismo on its side!

Some cars go as fast as possible up the famed Goodwood course, some drift, some take their time and do a few doughnuts on the way. But some cars…do the entire hill climb on two wheels!

This run set the world record for the fastest time over 1 mile on 2 wheels, meaning not only did they do the whole hill climb on 2 wheels, they did it fast! This, despite how unbelievable it sounds, isn’t the only time this has happened at Goodwood. It’s been done in a Nissan Juke and a Range Rover in the past.

The fastest time ever – McLaren-Mercedes F1 car

The unforgettable run by Nick Heidfeld was done in the McLaren-Mercedes MP4/13 in 1999 and he crossed the finish line in just 41.6 seconds. Probably best known for how the car seemed to defy physics as it stuck to the road like a Scalextric car, but at the same time, had us holding our breath as it jittered around the place.

Also best known for how nail-biting it was, knowing that it was just one wrong turn away from ploughing into a dense crowd of bystanders.

Toyota Tacoma, a beast so fierce it made us uncomfortable

Speaking of extreme danger, this run could have so easily ended in chaos. They may have called it a Tacoma, but make no mistake, I’m pretty sure that it doesn’t have a single part in common with the actual Toyota Tacoma pickup truck.

It’s apparently capable of reaching 125mph in 4.9 seconds and is said to have around 1,000 horsepower. As it unnaturally jolts and bucks around the quaint course, you’ll hear its demonic-like turbo squeal and monstrous roar bring pleasure, as well as fear, to those lucky bystanders on this memorable day.

The huge Dakar truck you can’t forget

Just when you think you’ve seen it all, a truck the size of a small building comes zooming around the corner sideways. Followed by the gurgling sound of the engine and the deep honk of the horn, this Red Bull truck surely was a sight to behold in 2017 (and 2016).

Ken Block’s devilish Mustang

Featuring one of the coolest Mustangs to ever exist, this run really was an event to remember. To be honest, I can’t help but feel sorry for the staff at the start line, they’ve probably gone deaf after hearing the roar of that Nascar V8 engine take off.

Not the best sounding car, that’s for sure

Goodwood is known for its sounds. The monstrous roars can probably be heard for miles around, so you can imagine how weird it must be to watch an F1 car climb the hill in almost complete silence… This Formula E car sounds like something from Star Wars!

 Fastest time for a road legal car

Set by Kenny Brack with the sublime McLaren P1 LM, this run was absolutely incredible. The P1 bombed up the course in just 47.07 seconds and of course, there was plenty of fantastic noise to be heard during it as well.

F1 CEO Chase Carey rides in a 100-year-old car

The highlights of this hill climb feature a fantastic moustache, a 28-litre engine that spits flames and two men awkwardly sitting far too close to each other.

Keanu Reeves rides the bike he designed

The ride itself was rather boring actually and the bike was kind of ugly. The only interesting thing about it was how Keanu rode the bike very awkwardly and slowly, almost as if it was his first time riding. The whole thing was bizarre and weird, which is why it’s so great.

The fact that Keanu Reeves was casually at Goodwood like it was no big deal is outstanding. Of course, the main highlight of this cameo is the interview, where he talks about how a biker gang used to ride through his hometown when he was little and reminded him of a pirate crew…

Do you agree with our top 10? Let us know in the comments below!