Hennessey Venom - 270mph

[masraum]

This thing is insane.

It sounds like 0-40 is practically at idle, then it sounds like he's spinning the tires from there to 100. Then it gets really insane. 270mph, that's hard for me to fathom. Some of the acceleration was at .8G which is pretty impressive in my book.

from http://blogs.marketwatch.com/themargin/2014/02/24/venom-unseats-bugatti-veyron-as-fastest-production-car/

Here’s footage of the insane run in which the 7.0-liter twin-turbo GM-sourced (Yes, GM GM -sourced) V8 accelerated from 20 m.p.h. to 120 m.p.h. in just 7.71 seconds, as VBox figures showed, per Top Gear. The Venom’s engine, built in Sealy, Texas, rocketed the car from 120 m.p.h. to 220 m.p.h. in less than 10 seconds.

“At the very top end, there was a little wandering, but hey, we’re going 270 m.p.h.!” the former Michelin test engineer told Top Gear. “It was still pulling. If we could run on an eight-mile oval, we could go faster than that.”

While the numbers show the Venom to be the fastest, it won’t be recognized by Guinness as such. To qualify for that, the vehicle would have needed to make another run in the opposite direction to account for winds. And NASA wasn’t allowing another run. Semantics, though. The Veyron Super Sport hit 265.96mph one way, and 269.86mph the other — both short of the Venom any way you look at it.

And what’s more, the folks over at Guinness put the bar at 30 units to be considered a production car. Hennessey is only rolling out 29.

I bet that's a heck of a ride.

I remember when people were discovering old used parts being used in their upgraded vipers. I wonder if that sort of thing has stopped.

Not much happens until about 45 secs.

[onewhippedpuppy]

That's scary fast, though hanging a big American flag out the window of a modified British car is a bit stupid.

[HardDrive]

Amazing. His final shift comes around 240mph.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

That's scary fast, though hanging a big American flag out the window of a modified British car is a bit stupid.

I don't think much that's left is Lotus. I guess this is what Wikipedia has to say about it.

Chassis

The Venom GT uses a highly modified Lotus Exige chassis. The manufacturer, Hennessey Performance Engineering, claims the modified chassis utilizes components from the Lotus Exige, including but not limited to the roof, doors, side glass, windscreen, dashboard, cockpit, floorpan, HVAC system, wiper and head lamps. Hennessey Performance and the Venom GT are not associated with Lotus Cars. For road use, the car is registered as a Lotus Exige (modified) and is not in fact a series production car.[1]

The Venom GT has a production curb weight of 2,743 pounds (1,244 kg) aided by its lightweight carbon fiber bodywork and carbon fiber wheels. The brakes use Brembo 6-piston calipers in the front and 4-piston calipers in the rear. The rotors are 15 inches (380 mm) carbon ceramic units provided by Surface Transforms.
Drivetrain

The Venom GT is powered by twin turbocharged 7.0L [427ci] V8 aluminum engine featuring Ball Bearing Turbocharging system. The engine produces 1,244 bhp (928 kW; 1,261 PS) of power at 6,600 rpm and 1,155 lb·ft (1,566 N·m) of torque at 4,400 rpm. Engine power output is adjustable by three settings: 800 bhp (597 kW; 811 PS), 1,000 bhp (746 kW; 1,014 PS) and 1,244 bhp (928 kW; 1,261 PS). The engine revs to 7,200 rpm.

The mid-engine V8 is mated to the rear wheels with a Ricardo 6-speed manual transmission.[1] Hennessey claims that the car can achieve a top speed of 278 miles per hour (447 km/h), although this has never been tested.

A programmable traction control system will manage power output. Computational fluid dynamics tested bodywork and downforce also help keep the Venom GT stable. Under varying conditions on both the road and racetrack, an active aero system with adjustable rear wing will deploy. An adjustable suspension system will allow ride height adjustments (by 2.4 inches) according to speed and driving conditions. Michelin PS2 tires will also help put power to the ground.

[Eric 951]

Wasn't Hennesy in a legal broil a few years back regrading ripping off customers?

[Pazuzu]

Originally Posted by Eric 951

Wasn't Hennesy in a legal broil a few years back regrading ripping off customers?

He's well hated locally, but there is still plenty of cars cruising around with 1000+ HP because of him.