Hennessey’s open top Venom GT has managed to shatter the previous world record set by the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse of 254 mph (408,77 km/h) with a new top speed: 265,6 mph (427,44 km/h).
The new world record was set on March 25, 2016, with Brian Smith, Ford Performance Racing School’s director, behind the wheel, and it was just announced by the company on the occasion of its its 25th anniversary.
“I thought that this would be a special way to celebrate 25 years of making fast cars faster. I’ve wanted to test the top speed of our Venom GT Spyder, without the roof, ever since our coupe ran 270.4 mph on the Space Shuttle landing runway at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in 2014. This was a great way to validate the technical excellence of our car which includes high-speed stability with an open roof“, said the firm’s founder, John Hennessey.
Hennessey will take advantage of its new record-setting roadster, as it will offer a limited run of three “World Record Edition” Venom GT Spyders, which will also celebrate the company’s 25th anniversary. Each one will cost $1.3 million plus tax.
Responsible for propelling the Venom GT up to its impressive top speed and from naught to sixty in less than 2.4 seconds is a 7.0-liter V8 twin-turbo engine, which churns out 1,451 HP at 7,200 rpm and 1,287 pound-feet (1,745 Nm) of torque at 4,200 rpm. Power is sent to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox by Ricardo.
Correction: The GT Spyder’s top speed is 265,6 mph (427,44 km/h) and not 256,6 mph (412,96 km/h)
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