The fastest sports cars in the world

Fast vehicles have always fascinated the world. The massive power, the almost limitless performance and the beguiling sound captivate the whole of humanity. Speed records have existed for as long as there have been vehicles, but what production sports cars achieve today has never been seen before. Whereas in the past it was Ferrari, Lamborghini or Porsche, today small specialist manufacturers such as Koenigsegg, Hennessey or Bugatti dominate with models that aim to break the 500 km/h barrier. In this report, we present the fastest vehicles of the present day.

Since Bugatti broke the 400 km/h limit in 2005 with its Veyron 16.4 production car and pushed the speed needle up to 407 km/h, a new era has been written in the automotive industry. The 300 km/h limit that fascinated drivers in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s is finally a thing of the past. Yet it is primarily small vehicle manufacturers, much less well known than the previous makers of bolides, that now set the tone when it comes to speed and exclusivity. For decades, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati or Porsche dominated the speed scene, but today the top racing cars roll out of the halls of Koenigsegg, Pagani, SSC, Hennessey or Fenyr. That's how times have changed.

When comparing maximum speed values, it must be remembered that such measured values are obtained on different continents under different conditions, which are not comparable, and their measurement and their measurement method must also be questioned. There is obviously still no standardization especially in the measurement. SSC has just broken the 500 km/h barrier with its Tuatara model, but the measurement is in doubt, which is why the manufacturer decided to repeat the test again. The information that manufacturers give about their models does not come from the world of fairy tales or myths, but is often carried by boundless enthusiasm, from which pure objectivity can suffer somewhat. All speed specifications in the report come from the manufacturers, who achieved them with tests or virtual tests. It simply has to be taken into account that one or the other information might not be completely correct.

Bugatti Bolide
Just a few days ago, manufacturer Bugatti unveiled its new concept car model "Bolide", which is capable of breaking the 500 km/h sound barrier, at least that's what was verified and determined during a virtual measurement. The manufacturer proved that Bugatti has what it takes to break the 500 km/h sound barrier with its new record of 490.484 km/h (304.773 mph) in 2019 with the Chiron Super Sport. But proof on asphalt is lacking. However, it is merely a matter of time before Bugatti or another manufacturer cracks the 500 km/h barrier.

Technical specifications


Displacement	7993 cc
Max. Power	1850 HP
Max. Torque	2000 Nm
0-100 km/h	2.17 s
0-200 km/h	4.36 s
0-300 km/h	7.37 s
0-400 km/h	12.08 s
0-500 km/h	20.16 s
Dry weight	1240 kg
Highspeed	500 km/h

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SSC Tuatara
Another contender for the next record is the American manufacturer SSC North America with its top model Tuatara, which cracked the 300-mile barrier at the end of October 2020, a particularly hot topic in the USA. The speed measurement was carried out on a public highway in Nevada. In the process, the SSC Tuatara reached 331.151 miles/hour, or 532.821 km/h. But experts and, of course, the competition doubted the measurement result, because a comparison with the speed test of the Koenigsegg Agera RS, which measured 457.94 km/h, revealed inconsistencies. That doesn't have to be bad will. In the meantime, SSC has agreed to repeat the test. However, this would require exactly the same conditions (temperature, wind, weather conditions, asphalt, etc.), which can never be the case. Therefore, the achieved measured value should be taken with a grain of salt. At the same time, SSC North America is not an unknown quantity. Already in 2007, more precisely on September 13, 2007, the founder of SSC Jerod Shelby set a new world record with his team when he set a new world record of 256.14 mph or 412.21 km/h with his then model SSC Ultimate Aero in the presence of the Guiness World Records and replaced the then Bugatti Veyron from the top of the world. Up to now, there was talk of 483 km/h when it came to the Tuatara, the 500 km/h is in any case within reach, should it not have been broken yet. It remains exciting!

Technical specifications


Displacement	5997 cc
Max. Power	1750 HP (E85)
Max. Power	1350 HP (91 OCT)
Max. Revolutions	8800/min
Dry weight	1242 kg
Highspeed	532 km/h (?)

Hennessey Venom F5
Another valid candidate in the global competition for the top spot in the speed discipline of production sports cars is the Hennessey Venom F5. The Texans are in a race with Bugatti to break the 500 km/h barrier, because the Venom F5 was built with the sole aim of breaking the 300 mile barrier. To this day, however, the whole thing is still a project, as Corona prevented a presentation planned for 2020. The Texan manufacturer already proved in 2014 that Hennessey is a real candidate to crack the 500 km/g barrier with its predecessor model, the Venom GT, which had a Hispeed of 435 km/h at the time. But the Americans now also have to deliver.