Koenigsegg does things a little differently than the other hypercar makes, and the world is better for it. Engineering mastermind and company founder Christian Von Koenigsegg’s dream of the perfect hypercar is a real, gurgling pack of 100 blood-thirsty savages. His reality rolls out of the company’s aircraft hangar facility and into the dreams of gearheads worldwide.
Skillful tweaking of the Koenigsegg hypercar package leads to the Agera S Hundra, the company’s hundredth customer vehicle and rolling showcase for all that is right in the world. A rough calculation of 10 years in business over 100 cars shows that these stunners aren’t born overnight: in fact, it takes more than 36 days to build each car from scratch. Is it worth it? Oh yes, and then some. This Koenigsegg is every bit as spectacular as the latest Pagani and Bugatti models, and even innovates dozens of clever technical achievements yet to be included by their southern European rivals.
This Agera S Hundra customer car shipped right from Geneva to its new home with a wealthy Chinese gentleman. However, your own version of the Agera S model is available now, with numero 101 baking in the autoclave as we speak.
Click past the jump for the full review of Koenigsegg’s shockingly desirable Agera S Hundra, a full image gallery, and detailed explanations of the key technical marvels that make this Koenigseggs’s best dream car yet.
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The 2013 Geneva Motor Show has been a hypercar-loaded show, there’s no doubt about that, but at the same time, it has been an auto show of contrast. First, there was the long-awaited Enzo successor, which is a masterpiece of design and engineering, if you ask, but with the lame name of LaFerrari. Then there was the P1, a car with a great amount of power, but with a design that does not make it worthy of its name. And finally, there was the new Veneno - the most un-Lamborghini-looking Lamborghini we have ever seen.
However, the list doesn’t stop here. Koenigsegg celebrated 100 cars built in 10 years (what?!) with the one-off edition Agera Hundra, while Pagani decided to improve, not the Huayra, but its sound system.
This seems to be the perfect climate to start making crazy statements, no? Koenigsegg officials claimed at the show, that with all the 2013 improvements, the Agera R can easily beat all the other supercars we saw at the show. The Agera is lighter, more powerful and can hit a greater top speed - at least on paper.
In order to prove its car is better, Koenigsegg will initially take it to Dunsfold, where it claims to obtain a better time than the Huayra - and that on standard road tires.
Cars UK claims this will be just the first step Koenigsegg will take in 2013 in its attempt to prove the Agera R is a superior car.
In an interview with Jalopnik, Koenigsegg CEO, Christian von Koenigsegg, presented his opinion about the future of automobile engines. Currently, almost every automobile engine uses a camshaft or multiple camshafts to open and close the intake and exhaust valves.
According to Koenigsegg, however, camshafts will be gone in the next decade, or so. He said that his company has been testing a new cam-less engines for quite some time now and that many other companies are also looking for other alternatives. Fiat, for example, is developing electro-hydraulic variable valve actuation technology in its Multiair engines.
We’re not too sure when new prototypes using the new cam-less technology will start seeing use, but according to him a decade seems like a tight deadline. We are all for new technology, but electronic valve actuation and other cam-free technology just seem like expensive ventures to take. But, we’re not engineers, so what do we know?
Episode 9 of Drive’s "Inside Koenigsegg" web series is the final episode of what has been a comprehensive and highly informative behind-the-scenes look at the Swedish supercar manufacturer.
Koenigsegg founder Christian Von Koenigsegg has played the role of host of the web series and there’s no better person to know about the intricacies of building a car like the Agera R than the man who founded the company.
In this episode, Koenigsegg takes us through the Agera R’s unique transaxle, a necessary technology for the Agera R, considering its mid-engine, rear-drive setup. Diving into the specifics like the authority that he is, Koenigsegg proceeds to explain the inner workings of the supercar’s transaxle. If you don’t know how the whole thing works, this video is a definite must-watch.
In so many words, the ultimate purpose of the Agera R’s transaxle is to enable the supercar to make the most out of every one of those 1,140 ponies while also ensuring that the car’s handling and reliability isn’t compromised.
Ultimately, the technology used in the development of the Agera R is the culmination of ambition meeting ingenuity. It’s mind blowing to think how Koenigsegg was able to build his brand without the resources of rival brands and still come out with a supercar like the Agera R that, in so many words, is truly in a class of its own.
To recap the entire web series, click past the jump to watch Episodes 1 to 8.
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Though the official debut of the special edition Hundra will not happen until tomorrow, YouTube user, Shmee150, managed to shoot a video of the supercar on the Geneva floor. As its name suggests - "Hundra" is the Swedish word for one hundred - this special edition was developed to celebrate the 100 Koenigsegg units built in 10 years.
As the video reveals, the one-off Hundra will feature a carbon-fiber body combined with celebratory, artisan hand-laid and swirled 24-carat gold leaf inlays. The same treatment will also be applied to the interior. No details have been revealed just yet, but we’re sure the 5.0-liter turbocharged V-8 engine will be tricked to deliver more than the standard 1,030 horsepower.
We have no idea how much this car will cost in the end, but we bet it will be something similar to the Lamborghini Veneno, which will also unveiled in Geneva.
It’s only appropriate that the 8th episode of Drive’s "Inside Koenigsegg" web series touches on the heart of what makes the company revered in the automotive world: the 5-liter V-8 bespoke engine that develops a staggering 1,140 horsepower.
As always, Koenigsegg founder, Christian Von Koenigsegg, is the host of the episode where he goes about and explains the inner workings of what makes this engine such a remarkable powertrain. Whether it’s the bespoke ECU unit, the relative light weight of the engine itself, or its flex-fuel capability, Koenigsegg dives deep into the powertrain and in the end, offers a hint of where the company is trying to venture into next.
See, for all of the esteem and acclaim Koenigsegg supercars have had in years, its founder believes that there are still ways to improve the engine with new technologies, not only to make it more powerful than ever before, but also more fuel efficient.
No reminders to hit play and watch, fellas. All of you probably didn’t reach this far before doing it on your own.
Drive channel continues its "Inside Koenigsegg" web series with a new episode that presents the Agera’s electronic brain. In the first episodes we became used to seeing Christian Von Koenigsegg talking about the company’s impressive supercar, in the sixth episode we will see Koenigsegg’s E-Controller Developer, Mattias Rosengren, explain to us "the elegance of the bespoke electronic controllers that comprise the brain and soul of a Koenigsegg." The bespoke electronic system controls how the chassis, suspension, engine and transmission behave.
As a reminder, the 2013 Agera R is powered by a 5.0-liter V8 with twin turbochargers that delivers a total of 1,140 horsepower - a power improvement of 25 horsepower over the 2011 model year. The supercar will go from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.9 seconds and up to an amazing top speed of 273 mph. Of course, if you were impressed by it, you’ll have to prepare to pay big for one: around $1.6 million.
In the fourth episode of Drive’s ongoing “Inside Koenigsegg” web series, Christian Von Koenigsegg explained how the interior of the Agera R comes together. Now in the fifth episode, it is time to take the supercar to the racetrack.
This time around, however, Christian Von Koenigsegg takes a little break and the man behind testing and tuning every single Agera R produced, Robert Serwanski, comes into the picture. He takes the Agera R onto the racetrack and pushes it to the limit and back – the perfect prep before delivering an Agera R to its owner.
Before you say his job is pretty easy, keep in mind that he has to turn around and tell Koenigsegg engineers where the car needs to be improved, depending on its responses in certain driving conditions.
This is one of those few jobs that nearly anyone could enjoy. Check out the above video and let us know if you would quit your day job for this one.
We have already learned how a supercar is painted and what the Triplex Suspension system really is. The fourth episode from Drive’s ongoing Inside Koenigsegg web series reveals details on how the interior of the Agera R is produced.
The video focuses heavily on how Koenigsegg builds the supercar’s innovative lighting system called "Ghost light." This system uses invisible nanotubes and billet aluminum buttons that allow them to illuminate and create a stunning lighting effect, thus its ghastly name.
The development process is, once again, explained by Koenigsegg founder, Christian Von Koenigsegg who explains the entire development process, starting with each separate item and ending with the final product which needs to be "really special and unique, and functional of course!" Quite a remarkable and ingenious system, in our opinion.
Watch this video to learn why the interior details of the Agera R gives it a million dollar feel.
Earlier this year at Top Marques, Koenigsegg unveiled a one-off Agera X. Now, after only eight months since its official debut, the car has been listed on Jameslist and can be yours for €888,888 (about $1.1 million at the current exchange rates). We know Christmas is over, but this can be the best gift for you for the New Year.
This Agera X is Koenigsegg’s chassis No. "88" and the eighth Agera ever built. The supercar features a matte-black exterior paint combined with a white, red and black interior. Under the hood, the Agera X keeps the usual 4.7-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 engine that delivers a total of 926 horsepower and a peak torque of 811 pound-feet. This engine will rocket the car from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 3.1 seconds and allow it to hit a top speed of 245 mph.
The car is currently registered to the Principality of Liechtenstein.