2011 Hennessey Venom GT

John Hennessey has long been known for adding plenty of extra horsepower to cars from various automakers. Now he has fulfilled his dream of creating a lightweight, nimble, mid-engined supercar powered by an American V8 engine. He has called it the Venom GT, and it’s performance credentials are insane.

Power-to-weight ratio is the main game with the Hennessey Venom GT, with over 1,200 horsepower in a tick over 2,700 lbs package. This means serious acceleration, with the Venom GT sprinting from 0-60 mph in just 2.7 seconds, and giving the highest top speed mark a shake with a 265 mph v-max. The source of that power is a 6.2L supercharged LS9 V8 that has been enlarged to 7.0L and lost the supercharger whilst gaining two precision turbos instead. Peak torque has been rated at an impressive 1,154 lb-ft (1,565 Nm).

The lightweight chassis is actually a stretched Lotus Elise/Exige, which starts out life very light from the start. Hennessey have then bolted on plenty of carbon fiber body panels and light weight components in order keep weight down. Ultimately the goal was to create the best overall performing and best looking road-legal supercar that they could produce. I think they may have actually managed to pull it off.