The Hennessey Venom GT is a high performance sports car manufactured by Texas-based Hennessey Performance Engineering. The Venom GT's design is based on the Lotus Elise/Exige.
Speed records
World's Fastest: 270.49 mph Hennessey Venom GT - On February 14, 2014, the Hennessey Venom GT set a new world speed record for 2-seat sports cars by reaching a top speed of 270.49 mph (435.31 km/h).
On January 21, 2013, the Venom GT set a Guinness World Record for the fastest production car from 0â€"186 miles per hour (0â€"300 km/h) with an average acceleration time of 13.63 seconds. In addition, the car set an unofficial record for 0â€"200 mph (0â€"322 km/h) acceleration at 14.51 seconds, beating the Koenigsegg Agera R's time of 17.68 seconds, making it the unofficial fastest accelerating production car in the world.
On April 3, 2013, the Hennessey Venom GT crested 265.7Â mph (427.6Â km/h) over the course of 2 miles (3.2Â km) during testing at United States Naval Air Station Lemoore in Lemoore, California. Hennessey used two VBOX 3i data logging systems to document the run and had VBOX officials on hand to certify the numbers.
On February 14, 2014, on the Kennedy Space Center’s 3.22-mile (5.2 km) shuttle landing strip in Florida, the Hennessey team recorded a top speed of 270.49 mph (435.31 km/h) in an extremely limited distance of 2.3 miles (3.7 km) with Director of Miller Motorsport Park, Brian Smith, driving. As the run was in a single direction, and only 13 cars have been sold to date (to qualify Guinness World Record Hennessey must build 30), it does not qualify as the world's fastest production car in the Guinness Book of Records. However, since that speed of 270.49 mph (435.31 km/h) was independently verified by Racelogic, till November 6th 2017, it is still the World fastest one-way record by a production car. The driver, Brian Smith, said that it could go 5â€"10 miles per hour (10â€"15 km/h) faster than the recorded 270.49 mph if they had more distance to run on.
On March 25, 2016 the Hennessey Venom GT Spyder posted a top speed of 265.57Â mph (427.4Â km/h) at California's Naval Air Station Lemoore, celebrating Hennessey's 25th anniversary. As with previous speed tests, the run was independently verified by Racelogic as World Fastest Convertible Car. In May 2016 the Hennessey Team revealed that the car was about 300Â hp (220Â kW) down on power due to issues with one of the car's three high capacity fuel pumps. Normally, the Venom GT Spyder delivers 1,451Â hp (1,082Â kW) and 1,287Â lbâ‹…ft (1,745Â Nâ‹…m) from its forced induction 7.0-liter V8, making it the third most powerful production car at the time, behind the Bugatti Chiron and the Koenigsegg Regera.
Specifications
Chassis
The Venom GT utilizes a heavily modified Lotus Elise/Exige chassis. The manufacturer, Hennessey Performance Engineering, states the modified chassis uses components from the Lotus Exige, including the roof, doors, side glass, windscreen, 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 a series production car.
The Venom GT has a curb weight of 2,743Â lb (1,244Â kg) aided by 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 (380Â mm) carbon ceramic units provided by Surface Transforms.
Hennessey Venom GT has a power to weight ratio of 1Â kg (2.20Â lb) per horsepower.
Drivetrain
The Venom GT is powered by a twin turbocharged 427 cu in (7.0 L) GM LSX engine. The LSX architecture incorporates specific design features such as reinforced internal components and additional head bolts with aluminum heads including twin Precision dual ball bearing turbochargers. 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 1,200 bhp (895 kW; 1,217 PS). The engine revs to 7,200 rpm.
The mid-mounted V8 engine is mated to the rear wheels with a Ricardo 6-speed manual transmission, which was also used in the Ford GT.
A programmable traction control system manages 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 allows ride height adjustments by 2.4 inches (61Â mm) according to speed and driving conditions. Michelin Pilot Sport 2 tires also help put power to the ground.
Venom GT Spyder
The Venom GT Spyder is an open top version of the Venom GT. Having decided to order a Venom GT, Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler approached Hennessey in mid-late 2011 and asked if an open-top version could be created. This involved structural changes which added 30Â lb (14Â kg) to the curb weight. Tyler's was the first of five cars scheduled for the 2013 model year. The car was later put up for auction on January 20, 2017 and was sold by Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale, Arizona for US$800,000.
The Spyder for the 2016 model year gained 207Â hp (154Â kW) more for a total of 1,451Â hp (1,082Â kW).
The production of the Spyder was limited to five units with a one-off Spyder being produced as the "Final edition" model bringing the total to 6 units.
Venom GT "World's Fastest Edition" (2014)
The Venom GT "World's Fastest Edition" is a version of the Venom GT coupe limited to 3 units. The model commemorates the Venom GT coupe's 0â€"300 km/h Guinness World Record.
The vehicle went on sale for US$1.25 million. All three units were sold to customers shortly after their production was announced by the manufacturer.
Venom GT "Final Edition" (2017)
A single unit of the Venom GT Spyder, called the Final Edition was produced to commemorate the car's six year production run and to mark an end to the production of the Venom GT. The engine output is the same but the curb weight has been decreased by 9Â lb (4Â kg). The livery of the car is a "Glacier Blue" paint job with double narrow white stripes. The vehicle was already sold for US$1.2 million before it was unveiled.
Venom F5
Hennessey Venom GT's successor, the Hennessey Venom F5 was unveiled at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, on November 1, 2017, unlike its predecessor Hennessey Venom GT, The Venom F5 is a series production car that is built completely from ground up, include chassis and engine, with high expectations of its intended world-beating speed record. Using its projected 2.0 second 0â€"60 mph (0â€"97 km/h) acceleration and 301 mph (484 km/h) top speed, Hennessey’s Venom F5 aims to eliminate the Bugatti Chiron and the Koenigsegg Agera on all acceleration and speed factors. The Venom F5 contains a bespoke proprietary 7.4-liter twin-turbocharged V8, making this their first in-house engine. It produces 1,600 hp (1,193 kW; 1,622 PS) and 1,300 lbâ‹…ft (1,763 Nâ‹…m) of torque. Pennzoil and Shell are partners with Hennessey for the project to help reach the 300 mph (483 km/h) top speed mark. The top speed is claimed to be 301 mph (484 km/h) through a V-MAX speed-tracking system. Hennessey predicts the car can perform 0â€"186 mph (0â€"300 km/h) in a time of under 10 seconds and a 0â€"249 mph (0â€"400 km/h) time of under 20 seconds. Only 24 will be built with each car costing US$1.6 million.
References
External links
- Hennessey Venom GT official Hennessey site