Hennessey's 1355kW Venom F5 makes its debut

Hennessey has revealed the Venom F5 in production trim, re-introducing us to what might be the last word in the top-speed wars among hypercar manufacturers.

At the same time, the brand’s confirmed performance targets that are simply mind-blowing.

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Hennessey says the Venom F5 should reach 100km/h in 2.6 seconds, 200km/h in 4.7 seconds and storm above 500km/h in hopes of setting a record for a “production specification” car.

The price is just as startling, as Hennessey will build 24 units at US$2.1m (A$2.78m) each to celebrate 30 years since the company was founded.

But the Venom F5 is packing serious credentials to justify the price. At its core is a carbon-fibre monocoque weighing 86kg.

A full carbon-fibre body crafted for aerodynamics with a flat underfloor, splitters, diffuser and subtle lip spoiler surround the cockpit. While a 6.6-litre twin-turbo V8 named Fury sits behind the driver.

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The engine’s confirmed to put out 1355kW and a truck-pulling 1617Nm through a seven-speed semi-automatic gearbox.

Combined with the F5’s 1360kg dry weight, the rear-wheel-drive hypercar sits at an amazing 996kW-per-tonne. That's more than three times the Porsche 911 Turbo S’s power-to-weight ratio.

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Hennessey says it plans to tackle its top-speed tests next year as part of its development, promising a return to a shuttle landing facility for an attempt with the Venom F5.

Penske suspension couples with Brembo brakes to make the most of Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 rubber, the latter of which Hennessey says Michelin will test for the run.

Importantly, it’s vowed to test in both directions when validating the effort, as it is done with records to achieve an average, and therefore, legitimate top speed claim.

That's something founder John Hennessey has stressed Bugatti skipped when taking a special prototype Chiron to 300mph (490km/h).

It’s also promised UK-based data company Racelogic will be on hand to independently verify the run with its equipment. So it all sounds very serious – and squarely aimed at eliminating any doubt if the car is successful.

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Running any car up to those sort of speeds invites a host of challenges. And Hennessey says if the 5.2km-long landing strip proves too short then it’ll take to a closed public highway, ala Koenigsegg and SSC’s own attempts.

Of course, if you remember, that’s a very real possibility. Hennessey’s Venom GT hit 435km/h on the John F. Kennedy Space Center landing strip without much road to spare.