2011 Hennessey Venom GT

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But it still needs a crossbar grille. I'm not driving around a Lotus Viper...

I mean, hell, RUF's CTR3 does a better job of keeping the Porsche cues than Hennessy's Vixige...

(Wait, Vixige is a pretty sexy sounding name...)

I'm going to give that name to SOMETHING, someday.

The Lotus has a crossbar grille?
 
More Views of the Hennessey Venom GT

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Autoblog
We showed you an initial concept sketch of the Hennessey Venom GT last month, and the tuner best known for building ridiculously powerful Dodge Vipers has released another pair of pics, this time showing the mid-engine concept's rear with its retractable spoiler both up and down. In our previous post, we mentioned the undeniable likeness that the Venom GT shares with the Lotus Elise, which is also on display from this angle. We can also see just how extreme the car's design is, with a carbon fiber rear diffuser that we're sure isn't just for show and twin tail pipes that exit up high between the taillights. Carbon fiber skirts also peek out the sides below the massive air intake for the mid-mounted twin-turbo Viper engine and the extra-wide air extractor vents behind the front wheels. It seems clear to us that Hennessey intends to make a go of building its own exotic, just like Saleen did with the S7, and we hear two cars will be built to show potential customers in 2009. With a power-to-weight ratio of 2.7 lbs. per horsepower, a 2,700 lbs. curb weight, and an estimated 0-62 time of 2.5 seconds, we don't expect the Venom GT will be a tough sell.

Aside from the awkward exhaust, I think I quite like it, due in no small part from the good looking Exige queues. I still don't like the fact that they are mangling a perfectly good Exige, but if they can make it look good.... The V-10 is great news too. Should be amazingly fast.
 
It still looks TOO much like a Lotus. Come ON! How about some clues to the Pentastar Power under the rear deck???? Why not just give the design over to Lotus and call it a day? You guys can do better to make it look like the Dodge it should be.

Start with crossbar grille.

superberkut
The Lotus has a crossbar grille?

No. The Viper Does. and, by aping cues off of another car, I'm really not impressed. Either make it look like a Viper, or figure out something of your own, but creating an Elise GT1 remake won't cut it with me. Lotus, on the other hand, is free to do so.
 
So far, only the room and doors are similar, bodywork-wise. If they're going to lay all of that fibreglass/carbonfibre themselves, why not actually do something creative with it.

The fact that their site still doesn't once mention the word Lotus is still a sign of the kind of business John Hennessey runs. He's a cheating, lying wanker. Even Tesla released ridiculously long statements of their interaction with Lotus and their involvement in the Tesla product. This guy? Nothing.
 
So far, only the room and doors are similar, bodywork-wise. If they're going to lay all of that fibreglass/carbonfibre themselves, why not actually do something creative with it.

The fact that their site still doesn't once mention the word Lotus is still a sign of the kind of business John Hennessey runs. He's a cheating, lying wanker. Even Tesla released ridiculously long statements of their interaction with Lotus and their involvement in the Tesla product. This guy? Nothing.

Exactly. I think that either they should work with Lotus on it or just stay away from Lotus's products. I wouldn't mind if they made a car with a few Exige queues, but taking an Exige and throwing on a few extra scribbles and redrawing a few lines doesn't cut it for a new and different car.
 
I've been saying to pull a few cues from the Viper (after, it's a Mopar Mill going into it,) and perhaps SRT-10 headlights and Comp. Coupe tails. Since the Viper is FR, the car will obviously look far different and unique, though still have a connection, like the S7 pulled cues from Saleen's contemporary Mustangs at the time it was released. Hennessy could pull out the old Shovel Nose he had on 1st gen vipers. Or, go the Callaway/Fisker direction and make something unique, your own. Making a 2010 Exige GT1 ain't gonna cut it, unless Colin Chapman's logo is on the nose and "L-O-T-U-S" is spelled across the back.

We can hope Hennessy's customers feel the same way then the car is previewed.
 
Yes, it does need a crossbar grille. Just where exactly is Hennessey coming from with this car? Is he all for a Dodge Viper or a Lotus Exige? Everybody's complaining about one or the other, so this is no doubt an interesting subject.
 
The rear looks like one of the cars from Burnout Revenge :dopey:

Put a Viper front end on it and I'm happy.
 
I dissagree that just because it has a Viper engine it should have Viper styling cues. Should the Viper have looked like the truck the engine originally came from. No. Should and Elise look like A Tyota, no. The only connection beyond the engine, is that Hennessey has a reputation for tuning Vipers. That doesn't mean that everything he ever touches should be a Viper, look like a Viper or be styled like a Viper. My guess is that this only uses a Viper engine because of his relationship with Dodge and because of his experience with thoes engines.

At the end of the day this is supposed to be his supercar. I do like the styling, I think it looks great, but I do have issues with it looking so much like a Lotus and not being a Lotus, not even (as far as he's said so far) having anything do with Lotus make it worse. It does look great imo, but whereas a lot of people in here are having issues that it doesn't have enough Viper in it, my issues are that it isn't unique enough.
 
Well, to be honest, I'd be a lot happier if the car were anything but a Lotus GT1 ripoff. If fact, if this car were a piece on deviantART, Lotus could get Hennessy for art theft. Hell, I wouldnt' be surprised if a suit arises. This British designer he's hired needs to think more creatively than this.
 
Dave, my issue is solely to the fact that he is modifying a Lotus and not giving Lotus any credit at all. He only mentioned the fact that it is an Elise chassis once, on an internet message board. The fact that he is a criminal prior to this only makes it so much worse. If another company like Reverie or ForcedFed did this with proper credit, I'd consider it pretty badass, but this guy is a crook, and to top it off, there is no official mention of the source of the actual chassis.
 
Dave, my issue is solely to the fact that he is modifying a Lotus and not giving Lotus any credit at all. He only mentioned the fact that it is an Elise chassis once, on an internet message board. The fact that he is a criminal prior to this only makes it so much worse. If another company like Reverie or ForcedFed did this with proper credit, I'd consider it pretty badass, but this guy is a crook, and to top it off, there is no official mention of the source of the actual chassis.
I agree totally with that, if the guy is gettin ghelp or input from Lotus it would be nice for him to say so. So far all we know id the chassis, and the designer. The chassis is hugely versatile and jsut because it's based on that chassis it doesn't mean much. Lotus are happy to sell that to anyone who wants it and he doesn't have to give them credit for that. Companies outsource parts from other manufacturers all the time and you rarely see them given credit for it. But using that chassis, and styling it that way gives the wrong impression if he hasn't go Lotus' backing. If he has, he should say so in order to prevent bacally whats happening here. But if he hasn't got thier backing, then he should be more original with his design. Hell, you can use that chassis for a famioly hatchback or a 4x4 it's that versatile, it doesn't have to look like a larger Exige.

As I said, I do think it looks cool, as you do, and I agree with your stance on the should it look like that angle if he doesn't have backing 👍.
 
That is extreme, but it's not an Elise. It shares the tub with an Elise but everything else is different.
 
Meh, I'm sure it's impressively engineered, but it's also a bit pointless. Unless you get a kick from outright speed above everything else it's likely no more fun than a standard Exige (or indeed a standard Elise), and unless they've really put some effort into it it's likely slower around your average circuit than a regular race-prepared Exige too.

It just seems to be another in a long line of tuning companies doing a bit of willy waving. "How much power can we cram into this?"
 
Meh, I'm sure it's impressively engineered, but it's also a bit pointless. Unless you get a kick from outright speed above everything else it's likely no more fun than a standard Exige (or indeed a standard Elise), and unless they've really put some effort into it it's likely slower around your average circuit than a regular race-prepared Exige too.

It just seems to be another in a long line of tuning companies doing a bit of willy waving. "How much power can we cram into this?"
The car is built by a Texas company. Straight line speed is the only thing we like to do. :P
 
True. And outright speed has its place. I'm just not sure there's much point in taking something very specifically designed for handling and then giving it ridiculous power. It'd be like taking a Viper and putting a smaller, lighter engine in, stripping all the weight and trying to turn it into a country road blaster...
 
That doesn't sound bad, but depending heavily on the engine.

World Products makes aluminum 426 Hemi blocks...Truth be told, I don't think the 8.1 V-10 is hugely heavy, either, unless it's iron-block...

Again, I don't think the Hennessy can be called an Exige in any way. All I can see is maybe the cabin. The rest is likely unique to the car. It shares less with the Exige as the Elise GT1 shared with the S1 Elise.
 
Can't comment on the front end as I haven't seen it with the cover off but the chassis is still the original Elise one by the looks of it. The rear subframe is obviously different but that just bolts onto the back of the chassis. The chassis is still an Elise, it still looks like an Elise, that in itself is still a major part of keeping the car an Elise. Either way Hennessey don't use the Elise or Exige name at all. They just have said that it is based on it.

Yes the car will be great in a straight line but I think they purposely used the Elise in order to develop something light weight that can handle a lot better than most of the other cars they have built.

By the way the car apparently has 1200hp and weighs 1225kg. I had also heard that it was going to have some ridiculous top speed figure but I can't remember what that figure they were aiming for was.

EDIT: Car officially unveiled

http://wot.motortrend.com/6659484/tuners/hennessey-venom-gt-officially-unveiled-packs-up-to-1200-horsepower/index.html


Ladies and gentleman, meet the Hennessey Venom GT, or what is most likely the case, the world's fastest, most expensive, and exclusive hybrid car ever built. It's another creation by well-known tuner Hennessey Performance Engineering and if you're still wondering, no, it's not battery-powered.
So what's with all the hybrid talk? Well, HPE sources its Venom chassis from Britain's Lotus Exige, stretches it out two feet and widens it a foot in order to better encapsulate the massive GM LS9 V-8. Now that's a hybrid.

In standard form, the supercharged mill is tuned to 725 horsepower. Opt for the higher editions, and HPE slaps on two turbos in place of the blower for either 1000 or 1200 horsepower applications.

Performance figures have yet to be officially set, but engineers are indicating the Venom can hit 60 mph in a scant 2.2 seconds. Of course, that's when the massive Michelins hook up. We're guessing it'll spin its rubber in each of the Ricardo box's six gears. Projected top speed: a Veyron-destroying 262 mph. Don't worry, though. All that velocity is eaten up by 15-inch, six-piston front, four-piston rear, Brembo carbon ceramic brakes.

Its reworked carbon fiber body sucks the Venom GT securely to the ground and is tailored for such extreme high speeds. It was diligently windtunnel tuned and employs an active rear wing to ensure its tail stays planted. Each corner's dampers adjust depending on road condition and its ride height can be raised or lowered for supreme adaptability.

Hennessey is hoping to build only 10 examples per year at its facilities in England. Four have already been sold at around $600,000 apiece, so that means there's six more, if you're seriously interested in this mean little ride.

A world debut is scheduled at this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed, so stay tuned.

2.2 seconds 0-60 and 262mph. Sounds good to me!
 
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2011 Hennessey Venom GT - Official Photos and Info
Hennessey’s new supercar promises to be extreme, even by 1000-hp standards.
BY STEVE SILER
March 2010

Since 1991, Hennessey Performance Engineering has been in the business of taking crazy-fast cars such as Dodge Vipers, Ford GTs, and Chevrolet Corvettes and turning them into tire-melting monsters for only the most talented (and well-heeled) of drivers. But these may all have been mere warm-up acts for its wildest and most unique supercar ever, the upcoming Venom GT.

The Venom GT looks like a spooky, matte-black Lotus Exige because that’s what it is. Well, a lowered Lotus Exige widened by 12 inches, stretched by 18 inches, and powered by the awesome, supercharged LS9 V-8 that powers the brutal Chevrolet Corvette ZR1. Once you’ve got your head around the output of the tweaked LS9, which ranges from 725 to 1200 hp, consider that the car is expected to weigh only 2400 pounds. Carbon fiber is employed for much of the body and all four wheels, the latter wrapped in pricey, steam-roller-wide Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 rubber. Bringing the Venom GT down from the fighter-jet speeds it should easily attain are huge 15-inch rotors clamped by six-piston Brembo calipers in the front and four-piston binders in the rear.

The whole idea of this car is ridiculous, but Hennessey has proven that his team can pull this kind of stunt off before, with super-blown Vipers that actually manage to reliably get their power to the ground in a (relatively) usable way. Hennessey says he has yet to test the prototype pictured here, so he didn’t offer any performance estimates. But even in base 725-hp form, we expect the Venom GT to be one of the quickest vehicles to which we’ve ever strapped test gear, provided the PS2s can actually get the power to the ground. He also declined to provide the exact amount he plans to charge for one, but has said it will be upwards of $600,000. Yup. All five of those zeroes are intentional.

Unlike most Hennessey creations, nearly all of which are built at the company’s Sealy, Texas, headquarters, the Venom GT will be completed in Silverstone, England. Ten will be built per annum, with fully assembled engines being shipped from the Texas facility. Owners will be offered a one-day instructional course from a Hennessey pro driver on how not to kill themselves the first time they slide the thing into gear.

The first public appearance of the Venom GT in the U.S. is expected to happen this August at the annual gathering of mighty collectibles in Pebble Beach. If we haven’t already by then, we will use that opportunity to take a closer look at this most venomous of Hennessey’s creations to date. But rest assured, we will do everything in our power to get into it sooner than that, and bring you all the juicy details, driving impressions, and test numbers. Stay tuned.

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http://www.caranddriver.com/news/car/10q1/2011_hennessey_venom_gt-official_photos_and_info
 
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It's rather a deathtrap for everyone, I mean 1200bhp in a car that weighs 2400Lbs/1090kg... compared to the Veyron 1000bhp - 4400Lbs/2000kg
 
Posts about the Hennessey "Exige" moved out of the other extreme Exige thread and merged with this thread.
 
A question: To me in the pictures it looks like the car has been given a longer wheelbase. Is this correct? I for one would never, ever be willing to test those figures of speed in a chassis as small as an Exige. So I'm expecting they've made it both wider and longer.
 
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