Hennessey Venom F5’s Insane 7.6-liter V8 Engine Revealed

Last year saw the beginning of a new top speed war – one that began with the record-setting run of the Koenigsegg Agera RS on a Nevada highway. As a consequence, Bugatti’s reputation as the custodian of the top speed crown was lost.

But, the top speed war isn’t limited only to European brands. American upstarts have chipped in too. Last week, we saw the SSC Tuatara debut with 1750 hp, which claims to exceed the 300 mph barrier. Hennessey, the Texas-based tuner is already hard at work on the Venom F5. It too is gunning for the 300 mph mark. The car debuted last year but details about its powertrain have only been released last week at the Pebble Beach Concours.

The engine is a massive one – a twin-turbo 7.6-liter V8 capable of pushing more than 1600 hp @ 7200 rpm and a whopping 1,300 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm. It uses a billet aluminium machined engine block with steel cylinder sleeves, precision ball bearing twin turbos with billet compressor wheels, stainless steel turbo headers, and a dry sump oiling system.

Thanks to all this, The Venom F5 will be able to accelerate from 0-186 mph (0-300 km/h) in less than 10 seconds and to 249 mph (400 km/h) in less than 30 seconds. Hennessey has also confirmed that the F5 will tip the scales at 1338 kg. For comparison, the Bugatti Chiron has a quad-turbo W16 that produces 1479 hp and it weighs 1996 kg. The Agera RS weighs 1395 kg and has 1341 hp from its twin-turbo V8.

If everything goes right, Hennessey might just achieve its stated goal to build a car that can breach the 300 mph barrier, a feat it will attempt in 2019. That speed however will only be accessible to 24 people in the world and 15 have already reserved their slots at $1.5 million each.