The customer is always right, goes the old adage. So, when John Hennessey’s Venom F5 customers asked politely about a more track-focussed version of the 480kph+ (300mph+) hypercar, the Texan was only too happy to oblige.
And here is the result of that customer request—the Venom F5 Revolution. The big headline is not top speed—that’s limited to just under 400kph (250mph) thanks to all of the extra aero. Said aero helps to create plenty of downforce though, meaning the Revolution should be able to put in some ridiculously quick lap times.
“It’s basically our GT3 RS iteration of the F5,” John Hennessey tells TG. “So it’s not a race car—it’s still a proper road car but with a serious track focus to it.”
OTHER STORIES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED:
Honda’s electrified Super Cub, Dax, and Zoomer are the e-bikes we need in PH
Auction finds: Vettel-owned Nissan GT-R with only 130km on odometer hits market
Some more detail, then. It’s still powered by the bonkers 1,817hp twin-turbo 6.6-liter V8 that Hennessey has nicknamed ‘Fury,’ and we’re told that the Revolution has “nearly identical DNA” to the ‘standard’ Venom F5 Coupe that it’s based on. It uses the same seven-speed single clutch semi-auto gearbox (sending power to the rear wheels alone) as the original Venom F5, too, although here it’s ‘calibrated for competitive use.’
There’s less weight for the 1,817hp to shift too, with ‘a systematic focus on weight reduction’ allowing for a figure under 1,360kg and making this the lightest variant of the Venom.
The aero enhancements include that giant rear wing, a new front splitter and additional winglets ahead of the front wheels. The wing itself, complete here with proper US-spec livery for the first buyer, is adjustable and can provide up to 363kg of downforce at 300kph or over 635kg at 400kph.
There’s also a new roof scoop to ram air into the monstrous V8 and help cooling, new forged wheels, and tires with slightly larger contact patches, while the double-wishbone suspension setup is more aggressive than before and fitted with adjustable dampers that can be ‘calibrated trackside with simple tools.’
The standard setup should be rather tasty, though, because it’s been honed by chief engineer John ‘Heinrocket’ Heinricy—a man with 38 years of performance car development experience at General Motors and multiple race and championship wins in his motorsport career.
Oh, and Heinricy also has over 1,000 laps of the Nurburgring to his name, and it just so happens that some testing of the Revolution will take place in that particular part of Germany later this year. Look out for the lap time.
“Are we intending to beat the AMG One at the Nordschleife? Not necessarily—that’s not why we built the car. But certainly, at some point when we do get to the Nordschleife, we’re looking at the One’s 6min35sec,” says John Hennessey.
“We’re not making any statements that we’re going to set any particular lap records, but we’re going to do extensive testing and make sure that we’ve got a car that our clients are very happy with and feel confident in. If by virtue of that the car runs a certain number then great, and whether it’s the AMG One at the Nurburgring or the McLaren Senna, which ran a 2min13sec at the Circuit of the Americas, we’d like to see how our car compares. As we get into our testing program we’ll keep you posted if any of our lap times are newsworthy.”
You’ll be able to track your own lap times when driving the Revolution, too, because it’ll also come with a full digital track telemetry system. Testing will also take place at the Circuit of the Americas, Laguna Seca, Road America, and Spa-Francorchamps.
The cost for all of this? A snip at just $2.7 million (P148.09 million), and it’ll be limited to just 24 units too. Most of them have already sold, though, so if the Revolution is your ideal track-ready hypercar (out of the many to choose from these days) then you best get that order in quickly.
More photos of the Hennessey Venom F5 Revolution:
NOTE: This article first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
