A new challenger looking to set the record for the fastest production car in the world has emerged, with the Texan tuning company Hennessey announcing its new Venom F5 hypercar.
The current record-holder is the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport, which hit 268mph in 2010. However, Hennessey claim it will be able to beat that by some margin.
The F5, which is named after the highest tornado rating on the Fujita scale, is an all-new hypercar specifically designed to reach a top speed of 300mph, beating the Super Sport by a massive 32mph.
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However, it won't be the first time Hennessey has tried to dethrone the Veyron Super Sport.
In 2014, it took its V8-engined Venom, a 1,244bhp hypercar based on the Lotus Elise, to a top speed of 270mph over a single run at the space shuttle landing strip in Florida.
But as it only completed a single run, it didn't qualify for the Guinness record for the fastest production car, Top Gear says . To qualify, the car must complete two runs in either direction, "with the two top speeds averaged out for the official time".
To ensure it grabs the record this year, Hennessey has designed the F5 from the ground up with an all-new chassis body panelling, Evo reports.
Power is expected to come from a Chevrolet-sourced V8 engine, with power figures "estimated to be around 1.479bhp". This should help the Venom F5 do 0-60mph in "two seconds dead" and on to its target speed of 300mph.
"The best way I can describe the Venom F5 is that it is sophisticated aggression on wheels," says company founder John Hennessey, adding that the car "will be exceptionally American and built in Texas".
The Venom F5 will be unveiled to the world "later this year".
