Just a few decades ago, any production car hitting 200 MPH was just a dream. Even now, cars that can surpass 200 MPH are few and far between, reserved for only supercars and the fastest performance cars. For years, car manufacturers have been pushing the limits of engineering inching closer and closer to the 300-MPH barrier, something even F1 race cars are not designed to do.
Now, as if a switch was flipped, multiple cars have broken the 300-MPH barrier. The first managed to do it at the tail end of 2019 and all the others broke the barrier within the last year with more right around the corner. Here are five supercars that have either broken the barrier or claimed to have and another five that are so close they’ll likely break the barrier in the next couple of years.
10 Shelby Supercars Tuatara — 331 MPH
The Shelby Supercars Tuatara is currently the fastest production car in the world with an average top speed of 316.11 MPH but its fastest run clocked in at a mind-blowing 331.5 MPH on October 2020. The $1.9 million-dollar hypercar has 1750 HP and 1341 lb-ft of torque. Shelby plans to build a scant 100 models which are most likely already sold.
Shelby, which has no connection to the famous car maker Carol Shelby, isn’t a stranger to breaking world records. His first supercar called the Ultimate Aero broke the fastest production car world record back in 2007 and stole the title from the Bugatti Veyron. The Tuatara is as much artwork as it is an engineering marvel. Every component from the exhaust valves to the connector pins in the electrical harness was carefully considered. Parts from Space X’s rockets are even in the engine to withstand the immense heat and pressure along with gold pins in electronics to prevent corrosion.
9 Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut — 330+ MPH (Claimed)
Koenigsegg gained fame with the Agera RS, a supercar that stole the fastest production car world record at a top speed of 278 MPH. They haven’t slowed down and they are about to release the hardcore version of their Jesko hypercar, the Jesko Absolut. The ultra-exclusive hypercar makes 1,600 HP in a car that weighs about as much as a Honda Civic. The Jesko Absolut also has a top-speed mode that Koenigsegg says will allow the car to hit a 330 MPH top speed. This top speed has not been verified yet but based on Koenigsegg’s history and the serious power this car puts down it's likely they’re telling the truth.
The Absolut’s price tag hasn’t been revealed yet but since the normal Jesko goes for $2.8 to $3 million and the hardcore version will be more powerful and rarer you can expect it to tack on serious money even before options. Speaking of options the normal Jesko has an option to make the body out of carbon fiber for just $450,000. The Absolut will likely have a similar option which could make a fully loaded Absolut well into the $4 million range.
8 Devel Sixteen - 320 MPH (Target)
Many cars claim they can break the 300 MPH barrier and are usually after the lucrative funding without any proof they can actually hit that target but the Devel Sixteen is different. Though they only have a prototype that they have already admitted cannot come close to 300 MPH yet they have something those other money leeches don’t, Paolo Garella.
For those that don’t know, Paolo Garella was the former head of Pininfarina’s specialty division. He was responsible for the creation of Apollo’s V12 IE hypercar and the SCG 003 track-oriented performance car. The entire project is backed by serious money from Dubai and features some crazy numbers. The Devel Sixteen supposedly makes 5,000 HP from a quad-turbo V16 engine. There will be other variants of the hypercar that make 3,000 HP which they claim can still reach the 320 MPH target. Ultimately, the car may fail and never reach 300 MPH but they are certainly the closest any startup has gotten.
7 Hennessey Venom F5 — 311 MPH (Claimed)
Another former world record holder, Hennessey is known for their ridiculous modified cars became a household name when it stole the speed crown from the Bugatti Veyron. The Venom F5 is aiming to beat Bugatti once more. Hennessey already claimed to beat the Bugatti Chiron’s top speed of 304 MPH with a meaty 311 MPH but that claim has not been verified by outside sources yet. Most likely, they will be setting up a very public display of prowess as they did with the GT beating the Veyron.
Based on Hennessey’s track record they can probably do it. The Venom F5 is made of a carbon-fiber tub for lightness and rigidity paired with a mid-mounted turbo V8 nicknamed “Fury” that produces 1817 HP. According to the spec sheet, the Venom F5 hits 0-62 MPH in just 2.6 seconds. Only 24 of these ultra-exclusive cars will be made with each having a $2.1 million price tag. The price makes sense as the interior isn’t completely spartan like other track-focused hypercars. There is leather and other basic human comforts despite the outrageous numbers thanks to the weight savings in other areas of the car. Hennessey has confirmed that more than half of all Venom F5s have already been sold despite no official speed numbers. Anyone looking to get this monumental car should move now.
6 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport — 304.7 MPH
This list wouldn’t be complete without the first production car to break the 300 MPH barrier. Bugatti is no stranger to breaking world records. The Veyron was the fastest production car in the world for many years and had the longest streak in modern history. The hypercar had 1578 HP from a beastly W16 engine and continues the theme of extremely heavy but powerful AWD to put down the power like the Veyron. Though the Chiron Super Sport is no longer the fastest car in the world, it will forever be remembered as the first to break the 300 MPH barrier like the Ferrari F40 which was the first production car to break the 200 MPH barrier.
Even though there are now faster cars, the Chiron Super Sport is by far the most comfortable and luxurious hypercar on this list. That’s not surprising since Bugatti started as a luxury coach builder. The almost $4 million hypercar will likely be the most famous hypercar for decades to come.
5 Koenigsegg Agera RS — 277.8 MPH
The former reigning champion, the Agera RS was and still is the fastest production car under 300 MPH. The Agera held the title as the world’s fastest for almost three years before Bugatti took back the crown although the Jesko Absolut is a serious contender for the current fastest production car in the world.
The RS version of the famous Agera was only built and sold between 2015 and 2018 which implemented advanced features from the One:1, only 25 units were ever made. The RS can produce up to 992 lbs of downforce enabling it to put down all 1,341 HP from the elegantly designed 5L twin-turbo V8. While the record reflects a top speed of 277.8 MPH, that’s actually an average speed, at one point the Agera RS hit 285 MPH making it dangerously close to the first car to break 300 MPH which is why we have no doubt the Jesko Absolut will likely become the fastest production car.
4 Hennessey Venom GT - 270.49 MPH
Who can forget Hennessey’s triumphant and extremely public world record-shattering run on the space shuttle runway, giant American flag in hand? Someone finally took down the Bugatti’s record, one that stood so long they had to break their own record. The story also had a rag to riches feel as Hennessey is a small independent car tuner. The Venom GT is in fact a highly modified Lotus Elise and not a purpose-built car designed from the ground up to tackle Bugatti, an automotive giant worth tens of billions of dollars.
Now the entire industry knows Hennessey and all six Venom GTs sold for $800,000 to $1.2 million. Even without the world record, the Venom GT has 1,451 HP and outstanding acceleration. During the world record run, the Venom GT accidentally broke the acceleration world record as well. Such a rare car is a welcome addition to any serious car collection.
3 Bugatti Veyron Super Sport - 267.8 MPH
The legendary Bugatti Veyron was the king of speed and held the title of world’s fastest production car not once, but twice. The Veyron EB broke its first record in 2005 and held that title for two years until it was broken by SSC’s Ultimate Aero. But the Super Sport variant took the title back soon after and held it for seven long years. With no serious competition, Bugatti broke their own record just because they could.
Unlike other hypercar competitors, the Veyron did not attempt to attain speed through shedding weight at all costs and having a powerful engine push a bare-bones frame. The Veyron was relatively heavy at over 4,400 lbs. To put that into perspective, that’s only 200 lbs lighter than a fully loaded Mercedes-Benz S-Class, a full-sized luxury vehicle. So how did the Veyron beat all its competitors for so long? The $2.5 million hypercar offers 1,200 HP and 1,100 lb-ft of torque but that’s not all. Special tires had to be custom made by Michelin at a whopping $42,000 per set because no other tires could withstand the terrifying forces the car put on the tires. The power was efficiently put down by the weight and a sophisticated AWD system where other cars just had wheel spin. Ultimately, the Veyron feels more like a jet plane than a car.
2 Rimac C_Two - 258 MPH
Here come the EVs. It’s no surprise that an EV would make this list with its ability to generate instant torque. The Veyron has already proved that weight plus AWD can attain massive speed making an all-electric system loaded with heavy batteries and state-of-the-art computers a serious contender. Rimac’s C_Two (concept two) has almost 1,200 HP and a whopping 1,696 lb-ft of torque which makes the 0-60 MPH sprint child’s play at a mere 1.85 seconds and the quarter-mile at 9.1 seconds.
The truly terrifying thing about the Rimac is what the future means for speed. The $2 million hypercar is loaded with lighting fast computers that can even drive itself. Rimac claims the car has level 4 autonomous driving which means in most cases it can drive without a human at all. There are also loads of driving modes like drift mode that coach human drivers and can help them perform at might higher levels. But if the C_Two is anything like Tesla cars they’ll also be able to update wirelessly making them more efficient, faster, and adaptable to current conditions with minimal to zero tuning. That might mean anyone who can afford one might be able to go round a track as fast as a trained racing driver with just an afternoon of practice.
1 Honorary Mention Tesla Roadster - 250+ MPH (Claimed)
Tesla is the other big EV player in the hypercar space. The fully functional concept was unveiled in 2017 and Elon Musk claims it can go from 0-60 MPH in 1.9 seconds with a top speed of 250 MPH. Though the figures haven’t been tested yet, considering Tesla has hit every performance goal they set so far it’s likely the Roadster will be able to hit those speeds. The 200-kWh battery that can also be found in the Model S Plaid will likely get an industry-leading 620 miles of range, with light use of course.
Aside from speed, the interior will take the minimalist approach we’ve seen in the Model 3 and Y. The car will also be loaded with tech including a massive center console screen that is in portrait rather than landscape. With performance that can rival the Rimac C_Two people probably imagined it would be just as expensive but Elon Musk claims the base version can be had for just $200,000, a fraction of what the Rimac costs. But there’s no telling how high that price tag can climb with extras like autonomous driving and a more robust power system that can withstand track conditions.