This life-sized K'Nex replica of the Bloodhound Supersonic Car was today unveiled by Richard Noble, OBE and former world land speed record holder, at Brooklands Museum in Surrey.

The model, measured by the National Physical Laboratory and confirmed by Guinness World Record, is the largest K'Nex structure ever built, comprising of 383,422 pieces and taking 1,287 hours to build.

The giant model was commissioned to promote the Bloodhound Project, which aims to inspire children about science and engineering by building a car that will claim the 1000mph land speed record.

The real Bloodhound SSC (rather than the K'Nex model) will be powered by a Rolls-Royce EJ200 engine, the same as a Eurofighter Typhoon, as well as hybrid Nammo rockets and a 800bhp Cosworth car engine. 

Together, they'll produce 135,000 thrust hp. That will see Bloodhound cover a mile in 3.5 seconds, in excess of 1000mph, going from 0-1000mph in 55 seconds, or thereabouts. Bloodhound is aiming to set the world record on the Hakskeen Pan in South Africa in 2016.

The K'Nex model has some impressive specs too: it might be constructed from 383,422 pieces, but only 12 different types of K'Nex were used. You'll need 548 70 Model Building Sets if you want to build it yourself at home. Priced at £35 each, that's £19,180, although we're sure you could negociate a bulk discount.

The K'Nex Bloodhound takes the world record from the T-Rex model at the US Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, AL.