Today we will know the top 10 fastest cars in the world. Are you ready to satisfy your need for speed?
Speed and power are the sacred words of adrenaline-thirsty petrolheads.
Here, the laws of miles per gallon do not affect taking these works of modern engineering to the extreme.
Not so long ago, in the 1980s, there was a select club where you could only be a member if your car was capable of 200 mph! (320 kph).
Soon, the 200 clubs were put into retirement with the arrival of the new generation of supercars in the 1990s. From then on, it became usual to see a new production car breaking a new speed record.
Today, we will make a selection of the 10 fastest cars of 2021. We’ll see how those marks of the ‘80s and ‘90s are long forgotten.
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McLaren Speedtail
The fastest McLaren in the history of the brand opens this list with a top speed of 250 mph (402 kph).
Destined for 106 production units, the McLaren Speedtail squeezes every last bit of power out of its 4.0-liter twin-turbo hybrid V8 engine with over 1,000 horsepower.
Twenty-five years after the F1’s debut, the boys from Woking moved the driver’s seatback to the center position giving that race car feel for public roads. The dashboard is a real command center with screens that throw up every last detail of the car’s status.
The exterior was designed to offer the slightest air resistance. Everything from the tires to the thickness of the paint coat was meticulously designed, typical of the brand satisfy its OCD focus on performance.
It is priced at around £1.75 million, although it is likely that all units have been sold.
Bugatti Veyron 16.4
The now-retired Bugatti Veyron won’t be the only Bugatti we’ll see on this list. Although somewhat obsolete by modern automotive industry standards, the Veyron 16.4 remains well-regarded among enthusiasts and petrolheads.
Thanks to its 1184 horsepower, 8-liter quad-turbo W16 engine, it reaches a top speed of 254 mph (408 kph), that keeping it the fastest production car for several years.
The Veyron has the honor of being the car that led Captain Slow himself to be the fastest man on the face of the planet. According to the famous car journalist James May, the Veyron has a smooth ride even at top speed, only feels unstable when the air brake is deployed.
You can get a second-hand Veyron for just over £800.000 ($1.1 million), although you could also invest this sum in one of the other cars on this list.
SSC Ultimate Aero
In the not-so-distant year 2004, on the other side of the ocean, the engineers of Shelby Super Cars – no relation to Carroll Shelby – showed the world the fastest production car in the world.
With only 24 units produced and an initial selling price of almost $700,000 (over £500,000), this car demolished all kinds of records at the time. This car was powered by a 6-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine – in the version that reached 256 mph (about 412 kph) – taken directly from the Corvette C5-R racing car.
1250 horsepower delivered to the rear wheels through a manual transmission, making the Ultimate Aero a car for extreme drivers. Did I mention that this car has no ABS, traction control, or any kind of electronic assistance?
Despite there being so few units produced, the price of this car does not reach 7 figures. In 2018, a 2010 Ultimate Aero was even sold for as low as £160,000 ($220,000).
Koenigsegg Agera R
Koenigsegg is an old familiar name that has a habit of releasing a limited number of cars destined to break speed records, use state-of-the-art technology, and brag all over the place about its achievements.
With the launch of the Agera R in 2011, it set a speed record of 260 mph (419 kph) by taking full advantage of its 5-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine with 1140 horsepower delivered at 7400 rpm.
It sounds wasteful, but this model was Koenigsegg’s first to use biofuel technology. To get the most power out of it, the brand recommends using E85 to E100 biofuels instead of traditional gasoline as the latter reduces engine power by 200 horsepower.
Built-in carbon fiber, taking advantage of aerodynamic elements, and using custom ceramic brakes, the Agera R left its 18 initial owners happy, paying £1 million to satiate their need for speed.
Bugatti Chiron
The second Bugatti on this list could not be other than the Chiron. Named after the Monegasque racing driver Louis Chiron, this model was launched as the successor to the Veyron in 2016.
It shares the same engine used in the Bugatti Veyron but with improvements in power and acceleration. The 8-liter quad-turbo W16 reaches an output 1479 horsepower delivered at 6700 rpm and 1180 lb.ft of torque distributed to all four wheels thanks to its all-wheel-drive system.
The Bugatti Chiron is electronically limited to 261 mph, so its true top speed is unknown. According to Bugatti, there are no suitable tires yet to withstand the physical stress of the asphalt at speeds above 260 mph (419 kph).
Still in production, this contained beast can be purchased for as little as £2.18 million ($3 million), with customizable options.
Would you like to get one of your own? How would you customize it? Leave your impressions in the comments below.
Bugatti Veyron Super Sport
And we continue in the Bugatti house to meet the most extra limited version of the classic Veyron, the SuperSport.
After the success of the SSC Aero Ultimate, Bugatti kept its stiff upper lip and dedicated time and resources to turn the Bugatti Veyron into the fastest car on the planet. They took everything that worked from the W16 quad-turbo engine and pushed it further to the limit. Did you think you couldn’t squeeze more out of that engine?
The body was put through an overhaul, incorporating more carbon fiber to add more structural rigidity and lightness. You know the typical German engineering pastime of just getting better and better.
The result was an updated car for the time, 268 mph (431 kph) of top speed, and the return of the speed record for the Veyron.
By February 2021, the last Bugatti Veyron SuperSport produced was offered for sale in the UK. I regret to say that it already has an owner and the selling price is still unknown.
Hennessey Venom GT
Ah, freedom. For Americans, freedom is their greatest pride; so much is their desire for freedom that their cars reflect it.
And freedom is what the guys at Hennessey took during the process of creating the Venom GT. Although it looks like an over-the-top Lotus Exige, the Venom GT is actually a production car pushed to the limit. Let’s see why.
First, the chassis received extensive modifications to withstand sufficient mechanical stress, and twisting it would suffer at high speeds. Likewise, the body was reinforced with exotic materials such as carbon fiber.
They threw a 7-liter LS V8 from General Motors into the engine bay, the same as the Corvette ZR1, twin-turbocharged and mated to a 6-speed manual transmission. The result? 1244 horsepower of the purest American muscle transmitted to the rear wheels and a record speed of 270 mph (434 kph).
Currently, the Venom GT is available pre-owned starting at £900,000 ($1.25 million).
Did I mention that only 12 units were produced?
Koenigsegg Agera RS
The crazy guys at Koenigsegg, after the success of the Agera, was already preparing a new version of the model that would surpass the Agera R even more, will it be possible to improve it?
For the RS, they took the same engine as the Agera R and made a few tweaks here and there, added 20 extra horsepower, and removed the traditional gasoline limitation.
According to the brand, the RS is focused to be used on track but keeping the functionalities of a daily driver. Better work on aerodynamic elements, weight reduction and incorporation of technological elements of its One:1 project.
In total, 1160 horsepower propel the Agera RS to a top speed of 278 mph (447 kph). The harmony between comfort and track performance is balanced in this £3 million ($4.1 million) hypercar.
Bugatti Chiron Super Sport
Bugatti and its obsession to have the fastest production car on the planet reached a new level with the SuperSport version of the Chiron.
Now longtail and with tweaked aerodynamic elements such as rear diffusers and huge air intakes to cool the engine and its four turbochargers, it has set a speed record of 304 mph (489 kph). More than 300 miles per hour… in a production car!
Although it seems it is not enough for the French brand, they have taken great care to lighten the Chiron as much as possible. More precisely by 23 kilograms. Also, the electronic aids at high speeds reinforce the shock absorbers and steering; it is equipped with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, specially designed to withstand 310 mph.
For $3.9 million, or £2.8 million, the select club of Bugatti car owners will ride in one of the fastest production cars on the road today.
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SSC Tuatara
After 10 years of presenting the concept car of this model, the cowboys without limits of SSC bring to production the Tuatara, the new production car of $1.9 million intending to be the fastest in the world.
It has, as you can’t miss in an American car, a 5.9-liter twin-turbocharged V8 made in-house. The 7-speed gearbox is also self-made and custom-made.
The Tuatara has three modes: sport, track and lift, all car height settings. To date, the Tuatara has performed several top speed tests, mostly in failure, and in one of them, it managed to reach 316 mph (509 kph).
Can it ever be recognized as the fastest production car on the planet? Eventually, as the guys at SSC, like good Americans, don’t give up so easily.
Final Words
The fastest production cars are the result of a mix of engineers with no limitations and lots and lots of imagination.
Soon we will see new speed records set by zero-emission cars, and perhaps we will see new manufacturers daring to challenge the established premium brands.
We are in the 21st century; the fear to innovate and break away from tradition is a barrier that is being left far behind in the past. Speed is the new Holy Grail.
Did you like any of these cars?