Ernie toppled as eBay Motors claims milk float world record

The eBay Motors Mechanics Challenge has broken the Guinness World Record for producing the fastest milk float on earth, after reaching speeds of 77.53mph at the Transport Research Laboratory.

The new record, which equates to 124.78kph, was set after eBay Motors challenged British Touring Car Championship star Tom Onslow-Cole and TV motoring expert Edd China to transform an electric milk float into a high performance speed machine using only parts and accessories purchased via the UK's leading online automotive marketplace.

"The eBay Motors Mechanics Challenge has been an amazing journey and I'm delighted that we have broken the Guinness World Record for the fastest milk float," the versatile Onslow-Cole commented, "The team mechanics and Edd China put in a sterling effort to create a milk float that looks as slick as this and has the performance necessary to break the record."

The pair worked with the eBay Motors team of race engineers to develop the vehicle, including the fitting of a V8 engine from an old ambulance and a using a milk churn as a fuel tank. Throughout the project, BTCC fans and motoring enthusiasts had the opportunity to vote on which parts and accessories to incorporate into the milk float to improve its style and performance.

"It's been brilliant working with the amazing engineers at WSR on this project," eBay Motors blogger and host of Wheeler Dealers China admitted, "With their support, our humble milk float is now almost a fully-fledged racing car! I'd like to thank all the fans for their input on what eBay Motors parts and accessories we used to build the float during the Mechanics Challenge - they clearly know their stuff!"

Fans at the final 2012 BTCC round were lucky enough to see the float in action as it made its way around the Brands Hatch GP circuit on Sunday, and Andrew Hooks, head of eBay Motors, was clearly enthused by the entire project.

"It is fantastic that the eBay Motors Mechanics Challenge has beaten the world record for the fastest milk float, and great to see the reaction from our customers, many of whom not only keenly followed the project, but also chose the winning parts," he concluded, "Tom Onslow-Cole did a fantastic job driving the record-breaking float and I'm sure people will enjoy watching the float being put through its paces in the stunt videos on our website."