The good news is, everyone is OK. The bad news: it was a costly crash.
A Hennessey Venom F5 supercar undergoing high speed tests on the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center wrecked on July 1.
Company founder John Hennessey said the team was trying out a new aerodynamic setup for the 1,817 hp car and conducting 0-250 mph acceleration tests on the runway.
The $3 million car has an estimated top speed in excess of 300 mph that Hennessey intends to confirm with a speed record attempt this year.
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Hennessey said the car lost downforce and went out of control, but that the exact cause has not yet been determined. A spokesman confirmed to American Cars And Racing that the vehicle was traveling “around” 250 mph when the incident occurred.
“Pushing the limits of speed, performance, and physics has never been easy,” Hennessey wrote in the post.
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“I am very grateful to our team of engineers and technicians who have designed and built an amazingly strong vehicle. We are also very thankful to the first responders and staff at KSC for their quick response to ensure everyone’s safety.”
The Venom F5 uses a carbon fiber chassis and is powered by a twin-turbocharged 6.6-liter V8 driving the rear wheels through a semi-automatic seven-speed single-clutch transmission.
Tipping his hat to the space center’s namesake president who shifted America’s space program into high gear, Hennessey added “we don’t do these things because they are easy. We do them because they are hard”. We appreciate the support of our customers, dealers, team members, and fans as we continue our journey.
Hennessey is aiming to break the Bugatti Chiron’s unofficial 304.77 mph mark, which was achieved in one direction, but running it both ways and averaging the speeds, in accordance with most official record guidelines.
As of February, Hennessey had delivered 22 of the 24 Venom F5 coupes it planned to build, while an additional 12 roadster models are also being offered.