In 2017, Jaguar Land Rover approached Racelogic and VEHICO with the desire to perform a barrel-roll of their new E-Pace car, similar to the stunt originally carried out in the 1974 James Bond feature film “The Man with the Golden Gun”, in which a car is launched from a ramp, spinning through 270° before landing wheels-down.
Remarkable for its time, the original stunt is purportedly the first of its kind to have been computer-modelled. JLR set about recreating it using modern computing methods – but due to the complexity and risk involved, for the initial test runs it was deemed necessary to use a steering and throttle robot.
A test area was built at Santa Pod, the drag strip in Northamptonshire UK, with a ramp and enormous, custom-built airbag to catch the car after launching.
A VEHICO driving robot was installed along with a VBOX 3i RTK to ensure that the car hit the ramp at precisely the same point and speed every time – a feat not possible by even the best stunt drivers.
This consistency also allowed the ramp design team to make changes based on data with no human error involved.