Almost two years passed. Long enough for rumors to die and revive themselves. Finally Hennessey pulled the covers off.
The first customer-spec Venom F5-M Roadster is here.
It made its public debut this weekend at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. A British collector ordered it. The car sits on display across the grounds. It also runs up the hill climb. Eight times over four days. Eight runs. That is a lot of noise.
You remember the specs?
1,817 horsepower? That was the base. This is different.
This one pushes out 2,031 horsepower. The 6.6-liter twin-turbo ‘Fury’ V8 revs to 8,000 rpms to do it. Torque hits 1,445 pound-feet. But honestly. Who cares about the numbers when there is a stick shift involved?
Twelve examples. That is all Hennessey is building. Every single one gets a six-speed gated manual.
Power to the rear wheels only.
The engineers tweaked the traction control. They wanted linear delivery. No surprise spikes. Just raw power when you demand it. In every gear.
Purple carbon dominates.
Almost the whole thing.
Except for the center hood. The roof. The engine cover. Those stay traditional black carbon. Silver pin stripes run the length of it. It looks exotic. Like a Koenigsegg or Pagani.
Gold wheels contrast the purple.
A 55-inch dorsal fin sits on top. It starts at the roof intake. Ends at the rear deck. It matters above 200 miles per hour. Below that speed it just looks cool. Painted on the fin are hand-drawn flags. American. British. Gold paint for both. Celebrating the factory location. Celebrating the owner’s home.
The interior follows the theme.
The transmission tunnel mixes purple carbon with standard weave. Gold accents on the shifter. On the vents.
The seats? Purple carbon. White leather cushions. White bolsters.
The owner wanted to be remembered. So Hennessey added a 24-karat gold badge on the nose. The family name “Sheikh” appears on the back. Embroidery on the knee pads matches.
Base price sits at $2.65 million.
With the purple carbon? With the gold trim? You can bet it crosses the $3 million mark. Maybe more.
Alex Brundle will drive it this weekend. He’ll turn heads. Maybe even make some European executives sweat a little.
Hennessey says this manual gearbox and chassis setup aren’t just for this roadster. Coming soon to the Coupe. To the Revolution track model.
They have delivered more than forty F5s now. Worldwide.
So here it is.
A gold badge up front. A name on the back.
Does anyone really need twenty hundred horsepower and a stick shift in 2024?
