5. Pagani Zonda C12 F – 336 km/h (209 mph) 214 mph, 0-100 km/h: 3.5 sec.
The Pagani Zonda has never been about outright top speed. When you’ve got such extravagant design and exquisite detailing, not to mention epic acceleration, sublime handling and a pair of shoes made by the Pope’s cobbler included in the asking price, becoming part of the supercar elite was almost a given. And Pagani’s done it in record time – going from obscurity to revered supercar status in the blink of an eye. Still, it’s nice to know you can back up all that flash with a bit of firepower if you need to, and the introduction of the 214 mph Zonda F nicely boosts a range that otherwise barely cracks the magic 200. The hand-built 7.3-litre Mercedes-Benz AMG V12 does the business very nicely, providing upwards of 602 horsepower (650 hp in Clubsport guise), and doing the 0-100 km/h sprint in 3.5 seconds. We’ll take ours in bare carbon-fibre, please. And if you want real exclusivity, there’s a Roadster version available, too.
4. Gumpert Apollo – 360 km/h (224 mph), 0-100 km/h: 3.0 sec.
Yikes. Well, you’re not exactly going to miss this, uh, beauty appearing suddenly in the rear-view mirror. And seriously, move over, because although you’ve probably never heard of it, being fourth on this list means there aren’t many cars capable of outrunning a Gumpert Apollo. Topping out at 360 km/h (224 mph) is impressive, but it’s the 0-100 km/h time that really grabs our attention. Three seconds flat is seriously quick – you’ll be needing a Veyron if you want to go faster. Such high levels of poke hint at an exotic under-hood experience, but don’t be too disappointed when we tell you the Apollo is powered by a 4.2-litre Audi V8. Two appropriately substantial turbochargers later and you’ve got 650 horsepower under your right foot. That ought to be enough to keep the driving experience entertaining, especially when combined with a six-speed sequential gearshift and rear-wheel drive.
3. Bristol Fighter T – 362 km/h (225 mph) +, 0-100 km/h: 3.5 sec.
Eccentric is an overused word, but as a description of Bristol, the reclusive British carmaker, it seems perfectly apt. Imagine a sideboard on wheels, add a whacking great American V8 and you’ve got a Blenheim. Bristol got by building variations of these for years (and years) until suddenly it decided a supercar was desperately needed to complete the line-up. Thus, the 320-km/h-200 mph Fighter was born, and having gotten hip to the new millennium, Bristol can’t stop improving the specification of the thing. Apparently due to customer demand – no seriously, Bristol customers do attend track days – the new Fighter T has an utterly crazy 1012 horsepower and immense 1036 lb-ft of torque. That’s more power than the Veyron, thanks to a twin-turbocharged version of the 8.0-litre V10 more often found under the hood of a Dodge SRT-10. Electronically limited to 362 km/h (225 mph), Bristol claims a frankly ludicrous potential maximum of 434 km/h (270 mph). They neglect to mention the price, but if you have to ask…
2. Koenigsegg CCX – 394 km/h (245 mph) +, 0-100 km/h: 3.2 sec.
Poor Koenigsegg: Having spent the entire century so far trying to capture the McLaren F1’s top speed record, the Swedish supercar maker finally achieves it with the 389 km/h (242 mph) CCR when Bugatti comes along and rearranges the rulebook. That’s got to hurt. Still, what better way to bury the pain than to develop a new version: the CCX. A custom-built 4.7-litre V8 with twin superchargers sits just behind the passenger compartment, developing 806 horsepower and 678 lb-ft of torque – enough to propel the car from 0-100 km/h in 3.2 seconds despite only having rear wheel drive. A top speed of 394 km/h (245 mph) is achievable if you can find, well, a runway long enough, though the low drag shape that allows this does mean the Koenigsegg can be a handful in the corners. Extra bonus points for having carbon-fibre wheels on the options list and doors that are cooler than a penguin’s feet.
1. Bugatti EB 16.4 Veyron – 407 km/h (253 mph) +, 0-100 km/h: 2.5 sec.
Officially the fastest car in the world. Ever. In a straight line the Bugatti Veyron simply owns the opposition. Electronically limited to 407 km/h (253 mph), the Veyron’s top-end superiority is underlined by simply staggering acceleration. Remember the 391 km/h (243 mph) McLaren F1? Even given a 160 km/h head start, the Veyron would still beat one to the ‘double ton’’ (200 mph). More fun stats include emptying the 100-litre fuel tank in 11 minutes at maximum velocity – a situation engineers have described as a ‘safety feature’. Travel that fast for a whole half hour and even the special high-speed tyres would apparently start to melt. With four turbochargers, the 8.0-litre W16 engine makes a minimum 1000 horsepower, so it’s no surprise to discover the car contains 17 different cooling devices. Four-wheel drive and sophisticated aerodynamics mean the Veyron isn’t just a hyper-performance dragster, either, cornering incredibly for something weighing 1888 kg. A super-fast shifting seven-speed DSG gearbox and mega price-tag completes this ultimate high-speed package.
SOURCE-MSN AUTOS
