The Goodwood Festival of Speed is full of action as cars race up the famous hill climb. So far, we’ve seen the new McLaren 600LT, Italdesign GT-R50, and the 2019 Toyota Supra tear up the track. Not to be outdone, Honda brought its Mean Mower V2 to the event as one of the more unorthodox attendees to race up the hill. It loosely resembles the appearance of a lawnmower thanks to borrowing the front cowl and body panels from a Honda HF 2622 lawn tractor. However, it’s heavily modified.
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You won’t find some lowly lawnmower engine here. Honda took a 999 cc four-cylinder engine from its CBR1000RR Fireblade SP motorbike, which produces more than 190 bhp at 13,000 rpm, to power the mower. The frame is super light giving the mower a claimed power to weight ratio of 1,000 bhp/ton. Honda continued to raid the Fireblade parts bin for a clutch, ECU, six-speed gearbox, and full-colour LCD. Stopping power comes from four-piston callipers at the front and six at the rear. Top speed is claimed to be over 150 mph.
Yes, it looks more go-kart than lawnmower; but all that performance doesn’t make it any less functional. Honda made sure the Mean Mower V2 was still capable of cutting grass, thanks to some modifications to the blade deck. Battery-powered electric motors spin the carbon-fibre blades. Development included more bespoke parts, 3D printing, and advanced materials, which were necessary to give the mower more power than its predecessor and help retain the look of your everyday lawn-care device.
The video shows the Honda Mean Mower V2 rocketing up Goodwood’s hill. About halfway through the video, the mower stops on the track before continuing without any trouble. It’s not clear why the mower stopped. Honda did a superb job making it still look like a lawnmower – even a heavily modified one.
Gallery: Honda Mean Mower V2
