Just weeks after Bugatti set a new 0-400-0 km/h world record in the Chiron, Koenigsegg has smashed it with the Agera RS. The plucky (or mad) Swedes shaved almost five seconds from the record, and did it without the considerable might of the VW Group for backing.
Even though the record attempt was conducted on a slippery Danish airfield, paved in WW2-era concrete and covered in awkward expansion joints, the Agera RS was comfortably faster than the Chiron. Where the Bugatti needed a leisurely 42 seconds to accelerate from 0-400 km/h (249 mph) and screech to a halt, the Swedish supercar took just 37.28 seconds.
Just 26.88 seconds of that record was taken accelerating to 400 km/h, in which time the car covered 1,958 m (6,424 ft). The RS was at standstill 9.56 seconds after hitting that mark, having covered a further 483 m (1,585 ft).
The car used for the test is a 1,360-hp (1,014-kW) model destined for a customer in the US. The test was initially meant to be conducted in Germany, but poor weather put an end to those plans, forcing a rapid reschedule. The new venue, which also happens to be the biggest solar farm in Scandinavia, was confirmed just 12 hours before Koenigsegg left the factory.
Driver Niklas Lilja gradually built up to the record over the course of the day. He was busy behind the wheel, making constant corrections to the wheel and fighting wheel spin on the first three gear changes. Just imagine how much faster it would've been on smooth, grippy tarmac.
Your move, Bugatti.
Source: Koenigsegg
