Koenigsegg: Beyond the Boundaries #BlogPost

When you think of Koenigsegg, you think of insanity, pushing the boundaries and paving the way for new automotive frontiers. Koenigsegg was a left-field company that became the center of the hypercar stage, smashing records as if they were meant for Koenigsegg to obliterate. Doing what most manufacturers are hesitant to attempt, taking it headstrong and thinking outside the box, pushing the limits farther than what was ever thought possible.

History of Koenigsegg

Beginnings

It started with one man’s dream, the man in question is Christian von Koenigsegg, a young and successful Swedish man with an aspiration to start a world-class supercar company, and that’s just what he did at age 22. Christian as a young boy was always interested in machinery and the design of machines. They say he watched the film, Pinchcliffe Grand Prix, about a man who was a bicycle repairman that eventually ended up creating his own racecar, inspiring young Koenigsegg himself to one day create the perfect sports car. In 1994, the dream became a reality, Koenigsegg Automotive AB was born. Their first car was the Koenigsegg CC. The Koenigsegg CC was a prototype, a test mule, and a vision for future Koenigsegg cars. They were stationed in the small South East Coast Town of Olofstrom while developing the CC but later moved to a new station in the South Western town of Margreterop in 1998. In 1996 Koenigsegg created the first working CC prototype using an Audi 4.2 Liter V8 in Koenigsegg’s original design. It was the first Koenigsegg to feature the (deep breath) Dihedral Synchrohelix Door Actuation System, storable Targa top roof, and a full carbon chassis. It was an instant success with race car drivers and the public alike. Christian was a tinkerer ever since he was a child, so he spent much of his time developing and innovating on devices and pushing the technology in the CC, it was a small step in the right direction for the future of Koenigsegg.

The Real World

Koenigsegg unveiled the CC8S Production Prototype at the 2000 Paris Motor Show. It was a complete production example and hosted an early version of Koenigsegg’s V8 engine boasting 655 horsepower and setting a record for the world’s most powerful production engine in 2002, with many more records to follow. (CC8S stood for CC V8 Supercharged) In 2002 Koenigsegg delivered its first car, a red CC8S, 1 of only 6 in the world, marking the beginning of Koenigsegg’s vision of a world-class supercar. Unfortunately, in 2003, their development and construction building in Olofstrom burned down but they were able to save the cars and most of the assets they had. Their new factory was in Anglehom in a former Swedish airbase. This airbase was used by a stunt plane team that used the hangars to store their planes but since they were leaving, Koenigsegg took up the hangar as a new base of productions. Before they left the airbase, the squadron asked if they could leave their legacy behind in the form of their logo, the flying ghost, and Christian agreed to carry the legacy of the ghost on all Koenigsegg cars.

Koenigsegg Cars

Koenigsegg CC

The CC, as previously mentioned, was Koenigsegg’s first car that paved the way for the company and the basis for all future Koenigseggs, presenting the true insanity and potential of Koenigsegg. Taking multiple world records: World’s Most Powerful Production Engine - 2002 (655 Horsepower), World’s Most Powerful Production Engine - 2004 (806 Horsepower), World’s Fastest Car - 2005 (241 mph or 387.86 kmph), Holding the Top Gear Test Track Record for 7 years, and doing 0-300-0 in 29.2 seconds in 2008, the CC showed that Koenigsegg is a force to be reckoned with. The Koenigsegg CC line includes the CCR (2004), CCX (2006), CCXR (2007), CCGT (2007), CCX Edition (2008), CCXR Edition (2008), CCXR Trevita (2009) and the CCX+CCXR Special Edition (2009). The CC line ranges from 655 to 1018 horsepower and bodies made of pure white carbon fiber and regular carbon fiber and a total of 59 CCs produced. The Trevita is the pinnacle of Koenigsegg, Trevita means triple white in Swedish and was made using special and exclusive white carbon fiber weave. Only two were ever produced and remains the most exclusive Koenigsegg to date. Below is a gallery of all Koenigsegg CC cars in chronological order and were taken directly from the Koenigsegg website.

Koenigsegg Agera

After the CCXR Special Edition, Koenigsegg released a new line called the Agera, which means “to take action” in Swedish. It was the next stage of the CC and pushed the insanity of reality. It took multiple records including the 2011 0-300-0 record (21.2 seconds), First Megacar (1:1 Kg to Hp), 2015 0-300-0 record (17.95 seconds), 2017 0-400-0 record (36.44 seconds) and most recent and famous the 2017 World’s Fastest Car (284.55 mph or 457.94 kmph). The Agera has gone through many special editions and submodels, the Agera line includes the Agera (2010), Agera R (2011), Agera S (2012), One:1 (2014), Agera RS (2015) and the Agera Final (2016). The Agera, to date, is the most decorated and successful car, crushing records and taking awards one by one. The One:1 is a special edition Agera with One Megawatt of power, with the power to weight ratio being 1:1, hence the name. The Agera RS, as of 2017 is the fastest production car. The Agera line ranges from 960 to 1360 horsepower through the utilization of E85, E100 and Biofuels and more than 50 Ageras were made. Below is a gallery of all Koenigsegg Agera cars in chronological order.

The Next Chapter

Koenigsegg Regera

The most reality warping car to date, the 2015 Koenigsegg Regera is an engineering marvel. Regera means “to reign/to rule” in Swedish. It bends the rules with a lack of a gearbox and camshaft using a hybrid twin-turbo V8 with 1500 horsepower. It uses the 3 lightweight electric motors to get it off the line and from there the engine kicks in right after, all the way to the electronically limited top speed of 255 mph or 410 kmph and can do burnouts even at 160 mph due to the lack of a gearbox and camshaft. There will be 80 Regeras produced over the course of the next 5 years.

Conclusion

Koenigsegg is far from done with their cars and is continuing to push the boundaries of the automotive world. With the latest automotive advancement lacking a gearbox and camshaft in the Regera, we can only imagine what is next for Koenigsegg and the future of cars as a whole. They have come a long way from just a dream to a lucid reality, hats off to you Christian.

Thanks for reading! ~ GTRTURTLE

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koenigsegg
https://www.koenigsegg.com/christian-von-koenigsegg/
https://www.koenigsegg.com/koenigsegg-history/
https://www.koenigsegg.com/cc-prototype/
https://www.koenigsegg.com/agera/
https://www.koenigsegg.com/regera/