Lewis Shaw
Super cars can be measured in many different categories from to power to performance, value to comfort, to speed trials to authority of brand. When anyone talks about a supercar the first question undeniably will be about it’s speed.
How fast can it go? Speed is the one category that can gain respect and notoriety even for the underdog manufacturers.
The title of “world’s fastest production road car” is constantly in contention, especially because the term “production car” is not well-defined. The rules have changed over time, but the current requirement is more than 30 cars produced for road use.
Here is our list of “The world’s fastest production road car” that have qualified in the past and the present.
10) Jaguar XJ220 (213 mph)
Born out of a collaboration between Jaguar & Tom Walkinshaw racing, a specialist automotive and race engineering company, a concept car XJ220 captivated drivers with its version of a motor that won the 24 hours of Le Mans in a Jaguar XJR-9 in the same year of the concepts debut 1992.
1500 eager buyers put down their deposits for their production model of the Jaguar XJ220 with a 6.2 litre engine with dual overhead cams and four valves per cylinder. Horsepower was set for 500.
Unfortunately, The collaborating team watered down the concept for replacing the engine with a quad-cam, 24 valve twin turbo 3.5litre V6, a development from the metro 6R4 group B rally car.
Buyers were more than disappointed and pulled their orders, whether it was totally down to their engine change or the economic downturn which was affecting the value of collectable cars. Buyers were not buying, a total of 275 XJ220 sold for £475,000 each, production ended promptly in 1994.
The most prominent achievement of the XJ220 was being the fastest production car on the Nurburgring with a time of 7:46:36, for 8 years (1992-2000). Otherwise it the V6 still had incredible top speeds of 213mph (with limiter)
9) McLaren P1 (217 mph)
The McLaren P1’s 6 minute lap time on the Nurburgring proves that the long awaited successor of the McLaren F1 is one of the most capable performance cars ever made. Yes, it doesn’t have the same ground breaking speeds due to it’s limiter, it does have organ shredding lateral grip that can handle the 3.8litre twin turbocharged V8 Petrol engine that seamlessly blends an electric hybrid with a total output of 903hp.
The P1 will accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 2.8 seconds, the powertrain is similar to the F1 with a mid engine, rear-wheel drive design. Features carbon fibre monocoque and roof structure safety cage concept called MonoCage, bespoke Pirelli P-Zero Corsa tyres and specially developed carbon-ceramic brakes from Akebono.
Production was limited to 375 units at a starting price of £866,000 but the average buyer has opted in for the unique design add on’s raising the value to over £1million. McLaren had globally sold out by November 2013. This year announced a GTR special edition to celebrate 20 years since their 1995 victory of 24 hour Le Mans, which will be a track only car with an intended power output of 987bhp.
8) Ferrari La Ferrari (217mph)
LaFerrari exerts a powerful punch of 0-62mph in under 3 seconds & 124mph in just under 7 seconds, the successor of the Ferrari Enzo is proving to be the fastest road worthy car that Ferrari have ever produced. All the while reducing the typical supercar emission output by up to 40%, its V12 6.3litre with hybrid electric engine prowling a combined torque of 900Nm.
The hybrid system is modelled on the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) used in the Ferrari Formula One cars, the electric engine is designed to produce maximum outputs all of the time.
The driving position is set to be half way between formula one and a normal sports car, with fixed low slung carbon fibre seats elevate the driver’s backside to sitting broadly the same height as their toes, movable steering wheel and pedals, the cabin is stripped back from all the gadgetry to make for a very intimate and focused driving environment. All 499 cars are sold out just after release in 2014 even with Ferrari’s strict ownership policy for over £1.15million each, its is claimed to be a masterpiece from Maranello.
7) Ferrari Enzo (217 mph)
A decade ago the Enzo was the epitome of Supercar prowess, named after the Ferrari founder, the Enzo’s mechanical and styling set the tone for a generation of Ferrari road cars and also represents an important point in supercar development with the integration of Formula 1 technology.
The Enzo was announced in 2002 with a limited production of 349 cars which were sold before production began. Then added another 50 to the production line as pressure from the demand grew. They built a 400th car and donated it to the Vatican for Charity.
Deemed a tricky car to drive with limited electronic aids it requires a skilful driver. The Enzo’s F140 B V12 engine was the first of a new generation for Ferrari. It is based on the design of the V8 found in Maserati’s Quattroporte, using the same basic design and 104 mm (4.1 in) bore spacing. This design will replace the former architectures seen in V12 and V8 engines used in most other contemporary Ferraris. The much celebrated car typically trades in todays auctions for over £800,000.
6) Aston Martin One-77 (220 mph)
The fastest Aston Martin model ever created is the One-77, an extremely limited supercar that can hit speeds in excess of 220 miles per hour. Aptly named, the One-77 was limited to a production run of 77 units, one of which actually ended up a part of the Dubai Police Department’s fleet, oddly enough. The One-77 has no trouble with acceleration from 0-60 in just 3.5 seconds on its way to 220 at top speed; horsepower tallies up to 750.
Designed like a typical Aston Martin with the 7.3litre V12 engine placed at the front of the car. Immensely rigid lightweight carbon fibre monocoque clad in a seamless bodyshell handcrafted from aluminium at its heart. No compromises were made in the design of this two seater coupe, it was important to the designers to retain as much of the Aston Martin character as possible as they took their regular road racer into performance hypercar leagues.
5) McLaren F1 (241 mph)
Considering the F1 was McLaren’s first attempt at developing a super car it has been redeemed as ‘One of the coolest cars ever made’ .The McLaren F1 was put into production in 1992 after it was unveiled at a sporting club in Monaco. 106 cars in total where produced at the Woking factory in Surrey England, between 1998-2005.
It was an instant record breaker with a speed of 242mph with the rev limiter off, the F1 is of light carbon fibre build, with a unique centralised position for the driver to create better visibility with two seats tucked behind. It aims to strike a balance between road car and their track car that won the La Mans 24hr race in 1995.
The BMW M 6.1 litre V12 engine is placed in a gold-lined engine bay, with a 6 speed transmission. They have debated a 7th gear as they feel the F1 is fully capable of reaching higher speeds, but nothing has ever materialised.
4) Koeninsegg CCR
Debuting at the March 2004 Geneva Auto Show, the Koeninsegg CCR is quiet like its predecessor CC8S and features dihedral synchro – helix actuation doors which are a staple in for the Swedish designers. Improvements were made on the cars body with a larger front splitter for optimised downforce, tweaked headlight arrangement and revised rear end. Larger tires, wheels and brakes adjusted for the upgraded suspension.
The CCR has a powerful 4.7l V8 engine with twin Rotrex Superchargers producing 817 PS at 6900 rpm, 920 Nm of Torque at 5700rpm. The CCR is named after Swedish fighter jet that was once stationed at what is now the Koenigsegg facility.
The Car can accelerate 0-62mph (0-100km/h) in 3.2seconds, Standing quarter mile 9.7seconds at 235 km//h. It competed for the Guinness World record in 2005, championing the title ahead of the McLaren F1 after their 8 year grandstand. Only to be defeated by Bugatti Veyron shortly after.
3) SSC Ultimate Aero (256 mph)
Eclipsing the Bugatti Veyron and remaining in that strong hold position gained the much sought after ‘World’s Fastest’ Guinness World Record from 2007 – 2011 before the release of the Bugatti Super Sport. The Ultimate Aero was born from an unknown company, formally known as Shellby SuperCars, now known as SSC North America, was first in production in 2005.
The Ultimate Aero is powered by a twin-turbo V8 engine that delivers a total of 1,287 horsepower. The redesign of the front end with enhanced aerodynamics, carbon fibre louvers on the side intakes plus a system called AeroBrake alters the angle of rear spoilers during hard braking fulfils an upgrade from the Prototype Aero that was auctioned off in 2004 for $189k.
The Ultimate Aero accelerates from 0–96 km/h in 2.78 seconds. Like most supercars has a rear mid engine and rear wheel drive, aspiring to be “The driver’s car” with a retail value of $650k this car can be throttled as well as enjoyed.
2) Bugatti Veyron Super Sport (268 mph)
Released in 2010 the stunning Bugatti Veyron Super Sport can achieve 268mph with its 8.0 litre W16 engine. Only 30 Super Sports are being handmade in the small factory in Molsheim, the luxurious interior and build comes with an equally luxurious price tag of £2million.
Upgrading from the ‘standard’ Bugatti Veyron, extra power, torque (1,500Nm) and speed was easily achieved with bigger turbos, intercoolers and re-engineering how the engine breathes. The Super sport’s acceleration is much faster than the Veyron thanks to the recalibration of various angles some would determine its a entirely new design that focuses on a more straight line performance than before.
The power of the Bugatti is it’s balance between super car and luxury, the smooth transition between its 7 gears, extravagant seats, 4-wheel drive system and stomach turning capability to generate 1.4G lateral force, enlivens the drivers senses in all aspects.
1) Hennessey Venom GT (270mph Verified)
Texas based Hennessey Performance Engineering created this speed demon whilst masterminding how to drop the weight in their Venom 1000 Viper which was the first car to beat the all wheel drive Bugatti Veyron 16.4 at the Road & track “Speed kings” event in 2007.
Unleashing their creation in 2011, the production melds the Lotus Exige chassis with the Hennessy performance engine 1,244hp, 7.0-litre twin turbo charged V8. The custom build chassis with carbon fibre bodywork is produced in England for Hennessey but there is no business ties between Lotus & the performance team.
Hennessy place the V8 engine mid body, mated to the rear wheels with a Ricardo 6-speed manual transmission right out of a Ford GT. The brakes are Brembo which feature 6 piston callipers in the front and 4 piston callipers in the rear, the rotors are 15 inches carbon ceramic units provided by surface transforms.
It has recorded a world record speed for covering 1/4 mile in 13.63 sec, It also has a hell raising top speed of 278mph (Yet to be independently tested). Not worthy of the full Guinness World Record for the fastest car as they have yet to produce enough cars for it to be deemed a production car. Hennessey performance are keen on maintaining their kingpin position with their future creations which they have just announced in Las Vegas.
