John Hennessey believes he's building the world's fastest street car, capable of more than 500 km/h (310.7 mph). To do so, he's put together a blinder of an engine, and now he's revealed the ultra-light, massively strong chassis of the Venom F5.
One can imagine the stresses this chassis must operate under – not least the massive 1,193 lb-ft (1,617 Nm) and more than 1,800 horsepower that monstrous 6.6-liter twin-turbo V8 "Fury" engine will be twisting it with. Then there's the shock from road irregularities to handle as the suspension tries to cope with bumps while covering a football field and a quarter every second.
The chassis the Hennessey team has built is not just incredibly strong, taking some 38,353 lb-ft (52,000 Nm) of twisting force to deflect it just a single degree; it's also insanely lightweight at just 190 lb (86 kg). You'd be able to flip it over with one hand.
One can imagine the care with which this carbon fiber masterpiece has been built, and the consequence riding on every detail for the team that built it. We fully believe John Hennessey when he says it's "an engineering marvel," "a piece of automotive jewelry" and "to see it in person is like looking at a piece of artwork."
We won't be seeing a finished Venom F5 hypercar until its debut at The Quail in Monterey in August, so there's still plenty of time for Christian Koenigsegg to take a crack at the 500 km/h mark before Hennessey gets his ducks in a row. Either way, utter madness. It'll sell for US$1.8 million – that's the base price – and only 24 will be built.
Take a closer look at the chassis in the video below, which juxtaposes incredibly dramatic music and lighting with literally a car frame sitting still on a bench.
Source: Hennessey Performance