Ever since the Bugatti Chiron came into picture, automotive enthusiasts have been eagerly waiting for the inevitable speed run. The French hypercar finally took to VW’s Ehra-Lessien test track in Germany to post a staggering top speed of 304 mph (490 kmph).
However, Bugatti achieved this monumental feat with a long-tail prototype which is near production-ready but not homologated yet. What this means is, even though the Bugatti Chiron long tail prototype will eventually lead to a production-ready Chiron Super Sport, the actual production-car speed record will continue to be held by the Koenigsegg Agera RS.
The Swedish hypercar set the production car speed record in 2017 with a peak reading of 457.93 km/h and an average top-speed of 447.2 km/h running in both directions of a closed public highway in Nevada. The record was set in an Agera RS owned by a customer in the hands of Koenigsegg’s test driver Niklas Lilja.
Speaking to Top Gear about Bugatti’s latest achievement, a spokesperson from Koenigsegg said that the company wants to congratulate its French rival on its great achievement, but in the process also reminded the fact that the Agera RS still holds the record for world’s fastest production car.
Should Bugatti attempt and break the production car speed record with the upcoming Chiron Super Sport in the coming months, Koenigsegg believes that it can take the crown right back using its latest product, the Jesko. The company spokesperson stated that, as per the same tools they used to evaluate the Agera RS, the high-speed version of Jesko will be capable of going faster than 300 mph mark.
Soon after the record run, Bugatti revealed that had it conducted the speed run in Nevada (at much higher altitude than Ehra-Lessien test track), the thinner air would have reduced the resistance and enabled the car to go 25 kmph faster (estimated top speed of over 500 kmph)!
It does appear that we haven’t seen the last of production car top speed record attempts yet. In fact, the Koenigsegg Jesko must be preparing to push the envelope further as we speak. It is about to get more interesting as electric hypercars like Pininfarina Battista and Lotus Evija join the fray to shatter acceleration records.
Koenigsegg and Bugatti have long been at loggerheads regarding the claim to world’s fastest car. Bugatti, which is part of a larger Group (VW) and with seemingly more resources, has found it difficult to beat Koenigsegg to the claim of world’s fastest car. After spending millions in trying to be the fastest, Bugatti has now announced that they will no longer focus on being the fastest; and instead will focus on other parameters. Does this mean there will be no challenger to the Koenigsegg Jesko?