https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWAavCjVQvM

The Texas based sports car manufacturer, Hennessey Performance Engineering, recently set a new world record with their Hennessy Venom GT and the run looks absolutely terrifying…

On February 14 this year, at the Kennedy Space Centre’s 3.22-mile shuttle landing strip in Florida, the lads at Hennessey Performance Engineering managed to get their Hennessy Venom GT up to a speed of 435.31 km/h (270.49 mph in old money). Now, while the lads have set a new world record for the fastest 2-seater sports car (and fair play to them for doing so), the Bugatti Veyron SS World Record Edition (pictured below) is still the ‘Fastest Production Car’ in the world.

Why? Well, it’s because the Venom GT’s run was only clocked going in one direction and Hennessey Performance Engineering have only built 11 Venom GT’s to date, meaning the car is only registered as a modified Lotus Exige and not a fully fledged ‘production car’. In order for the lads at Guinness World Records to take a record attempt seriously, you need to have built at least 30 units and make the run in two directions. Guinness World Records then take the average speed of the two runs and the resulting speed becomes the car’s record attempt. It’s all very complicated, but Bugatti can rest easy for now as their record remains untouched. Here’s what Hennessey CEO Don Goldman had to say: “I knew the car had it in it, but it’s a thrill to officially validate the Venom GT’s 270-mph speed. Venturing anywhere above 200 mph—let alone 270—is not to be taken lightly, and we’re elated to have accomplished our goal.”

For more info and pics from the record breaking run make sure to check out the Hennessy GT Venom website.