GRX (1967)

GRX

 * Car: The GRX
 * Driver: Louis Towcar (1967); Curly Cranium (1967); Speed Racer (1967); Jack "Cannonball" Taylor (2008 film)
 * Number: None (1967); #66 (Film)
 * Affiliation/Sponsor: Oriana Flub (1967); Royalton Industries (film)
 * First Appearance: The Fastest Car on Earth (Part 1)
 * Other Appearances: The Fastest Car on Earth (Part 2); Speed Racer (film); Speed Racer The Videogame
 * Backround:
 * The GRX gets its name from a type of engine in the original Speed Racer (1967) series (known as the ER-X in the original manga) and makes its debut in the episode The Fastest Car on Earth (Part 1). This engine propels the car so fast that it was responsible for the death of several test drivers.
 * Originally designed by Bent Cranium, the GRX engine simply proved too powerful. After taking the lives of five test drivers and eventually its creator, the GRX engine was buried with Bent Cranium. Exhumed by Oriana Flub for use in the Oriental Grand Prix, the golden GRX car was built. To combat the hallucinations and trauma caused by the massive speeds the car reaches, Oriana Flub develops a special gas. After The GRX nearly takes Speed Racer's life and sanity several times, the day of the Oriental Grand Prix finally comes. The GRX's new driver, Curly (the son of the engine's original creator) loses control after water interferes with the gas and die in a hideous crash.
 * In the film the GRX is developed by Royalton Industries and driven by Jack "Cannonball" Taylor. Already a fierce car, it became even fiercer as Arnold Royalton secretly installed a "spear hook" on the car for the final race of the season, the WRL Grand Prix. In the end however, the GRX and Taylor failed to beat Speed Racer let alone take him down, as the latter exposed the illegal device, causing the vehicle to crash and disqualifying Royalton. In the movie, it is confirmed by Royalton that the GRX is able to reach speeds of 800 km/h (Equivalent to 497.20 mph).
 * The GRX race car is powered by a next-generation Longitudinally-Mounted Transponder (LMT), which is developed by Royalton in collaboration with Musha Motors. Cast of materials mined from the lunar surface, this inter-positive transponder is a significant step-up above positive displacement superchargers. The vehicle's wheel wells feature a redesigned version of the T-180 joint system, dubbed T-360, in which all four wheels swivel independently of any axles. The billows of the GRX's Jonchee exhaust system independently recycle excessive thermal energy, which when combined with two dozen ground effect channels carved into the car's single-forge body, makes for some serious power and maneuverability. All of these features make the GRX the most technologically advanced car of its time.