3/15/2005 -- On February the 28th 2005, at 12.08 local time, the Koenigsegg CCR broke the production road car speed record, achieving a new official top speed of 241 mph (388 km/h) at Italys Nardo Prototipo proving ground.
A team of five Koenigsegg engineers and mechanics together with founder Christian von Koenigsegg ran, a technically standard Koenigsegg CCR in order to take the top speed record for productions road cars. The famous supercar test driver, Loris Bicocchi who is a veteran recorder breaker, drove the CCR.
The Koenigsegg CCR raised McLaren's previously unofficial mark of 231 mph (372 km/h) set at Nardo/Prototipo in 1993 for 10 mph. On top of this the CCR broke the official McLaren F1 record of 204 mph (386.7 km/h), which was set on the 6 mile straight line VW Ehra facility in Wolfsburg Germany.
A team of Nardo Prototipo technicians independently verified the speed of the CCR. The car was clocked using Tag Heuers Splitmaster 650 with photocells stationary at the track, recording the average speed during 0.6 miles.
Nardo Prototipo is a circular track with a circumference of 7.7 miles (12.5 km). This means that the car is driven in a constant turning motion, which makes the exercise and speed even more impressive. The steering wheel at this speed is kept at around 30 degrees of constant angel, which equivalates to a sharp corner for the speed.
The constant turning motion of the car creates extra friction on the tires. This extra friction overcomes the extra horsepower that was needed for further acceleration. The maximum speed was reached at around 6790 rpm, which is not equivalent to the maximum hp level, which is at a higher rpm.
With this verification of speed, Christian von Koenigsegg is even more confident that the Koenigsegg CCR is capable of reaching its projected top speed of 245 mph (395 km/h), or more, in a straight line.
Driver Loris Bicocchi was very impressed by the performance of the car. He feels happy to finally prove the performance of the Koenigsegg. This test was very important for the customers and owners of Koenigsegg cars. It proves that their belief and faith in the small Koenigsegg Company was well founded.
Filmator documented the record attempt. Filmator is a Swedish filmcrew that currently is making a documentary about the Koenigsegg Company for Swedish television.
The official Test Report is issued by Prototipo, acting as a third party verificator that forwarded the results to the Guinness Book of Records for processing. Hein le Roux, Adjudicator and Researcher for Guinness World Records, said: "Im pleased to say that we have approved your record claim, and the Koenigsegg CCR is therefore officially the worlds fastest production car."
Other interesting data from the Nardo test
Max temperatures (in degree Celsius) during 40 seconds of full throttle:
Ambient temperature: 8, Tires: 64, Engine coolant: 91, Intake air after intercooler: 64, Gearbox oil 94 degrees, Engine oil 112.
68 litre of fuel at the start of the test.
Car Set-up:
Standard road car fuel, Standard CCR Michelin tires, Standard ride height of the car, standard engine configuration, standard wheel geometries, standard gearbox, standard clutch, standard brakes, standard over boost pressure from the superchargers.
Test safety equipment:
Roll cage, 4 point safety belts, Fire extinguisher system, logging for data collection.
Comparison chart results at Nardo/Prototipo for Production cars:
1. Koenigsegg CCR - 241 mph (388 km/h)
2. McLaren F1 - 231 mph (372 km/h)
3. Ferrari Enzo - 220 mph (355 km/h)
4. Porsche Carrera GT - 207 mph (334 km/h)
4. McLaren Mercedes SLR - 207 mph (334 km/h)
5. Lamborghini Murcielago - 205 mph (330 km/h)
Data was collected from Auto Motor & Sport, The official McLaren web page and from Prototipo for the Koenigsegg data.
