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1,600 horsepower Hennessey Venom F5: a car of singular purpose

The hypercar is designed purely for straight-line speed with a target of being the fastest road legal car in the world.

Antuan Goodwin Reviews Editor / Cars
Antuan Goodwin gained his automotive knowledge the old fashioned way, by turning wrenches in a driveway and picking up speeding tickets. From drivetrain tech and electrification to car audio installs and cabin tech, if it's on wheels, Antuan is knowledgeable.
Expertise Reviewing cars and car technology since 2008 focusing on electrification, driver assistance and infotainment Credentials
  • North American Car, Truck and SUV of the Year (NACTOY) Awards Juror
Antuan Goodwin
Hennessey

Hennessey Special Vehicles' new Venom F5 hypercar has one simple goal: to be the fastest road car on earth.

After debuting at the SEMA Show late last year, the F5 has arrived at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show this week to put its rivals on notice. The F5 is the sequel to the 270 mph Hennessey Venom GT, which formerly held the "fastest car" before being edged out by the Koenigsegg Agera RS.

The new F5 features new lightweight carbon fiber construction that brings the curb weight below 3,000 pounds. Meanwhile, low drag bodywork with a 0.33 coefficient help the hypercar slip through the air at its lofty top-speed target.

Hennessey Venom F5

"It's no question of if we will break 300 mph but a question of when," states founder and CEO John Hennessey.

Hennessey

Powering this storm on wheels is a new 7.4-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine making over 1,600 horsepower and about 1,300 pound-feet of torque. A seven-speed, single-clutch automatic transmission with paddle shifters sends that power to the rear wheels, propelling the F5 to a 301 mph Vmax benchmark.

Singular in purpose, the Venom F5 is built around straight line speed and will compete with the Bugatti Chiron Sport for the title of "fastest road legal car" when deliveries begin in 2019. Interested? Well, you'd best act fast and have very deep pockets. Only 24 examples of the Venom F5 will be built and delivered, and 10 of them have already been sold at $1.6 million a pop.