We’re not going to lie; when we picked the Koenigsegg Agera as our 2010 supercar of the year, we were pretty proud of ourselves. Not only did we buck the trend of crowning the mythical title of world’s best exotic to the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport, we actually gave it to a car that has 300-less horsepower than the current fastest machine on the planet. We figured that even if the Veyron Super Sport can wallop the Agera on the drag strip, the latter’s combination of appeal, speed, and cheaper price tag was more than what we could get from the Veyron Super Sport.
Turns out, we haven’t seen the very best and most powerful version of the Agera yet. That is, until this year’s Geneva Motor Show.
Ladies and gentlemen, feast your eyes on the Veyron SS-slayer, the Koenigsegg Agera R.
Now, if by any chance you’ve seen this car before in our pages, it’s because we actually ran a story of the Agera R first generating buzz over the webs because the Oman Royal Family got their hands on one even before it made its debut in Geneva. But now that the 2011 Geneva Motor Show is only days away from opening, Koenigsegg is gearing up to give the Agera R the world debut it deserves. And when the world gets to see the Agera R, you can be pretty sure that it’s going to be locked and loaded to throw-down with the mighty Veyron SS.
Exterior and Interior
A car this expensive figures to have some pretty-high quality materials and the Agera R certainly doesn’t disappoint. With a carbon fiber monocoque serving as its skeleton, the Agera R is about as strong and rigid as it gets. So much so, in fact, that a roof is crossed out of the car’s ’must-have’ list.
Seeing as the owner of the model that will be seen in Geneva is a Norwegian skier, this particular Agera R will come with a custom carbon fiber roof box developed in collaboration with Thule. This particular roof box is a single-piece system that can out-rightly substitute for the Agera R’s standard roof entirely. But anytime the mood changes, the ski roof can be taken off in favor for a standard roof. Either way, both settings work favorably for the Agera R.
In addition to all the carbon fiber goodies, the Agera R will also be getting a set of Vortex Generating Rim (VGR) wheels that come with spokes that act as turbine vanes, thus helping maximize the overall downforce generated by the car.
Performance
Whereas the standard Agera is powered by a 4.7-liter V8 engine that delivers an impressive 910 horsepower, the Agera R will come with a 5.0-liter V8 powertrain that produces a whopping 1,115 horsepower and 885 lb/ft of torque stewing inside its belly. The Agera R also uses a seven-speed dual-clutchtransmission, making it a car that’s ready, willing, and able to unleash every single ounce of power out on track.
Pricing
No exact figures on the car’s pricing have been released, but from what we’ve been told, it looks like the price of owning one equates to somewhere around $1.6 million. That’s about $1.50 million more than what our budget can afford.
Competition
The Koenigsegg Agera R only has one car in sight: the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport. Ever since the Veyron Super Sport set the record for fastest production car on the planet after setting an average top speed of 267 mph, we have been waiting for a car that can rightfully be called the Veyron Super Sport’s "kryptonite". Well, folks, that car has finally arrived.
Now, in terms of strictly performance numbers, the Veyron Super Sport has an 8.0-liter W16 engine, and with the addition of four enlarged turbochargers and bigger intercoolers, has an output of a faint-worthy 1,200 horsepower. That’s about 100 horsepower more than what the 5.0-liter V8 engine Agera R is capable of.
So why, then, is the Agera R being touted as the supercar that will knock the Veyron Super Sport out of its pedestal? There must be some sort of rub, right?
Well, unlike the Veyron Super Sport and its rock-solid 4,052-lb dry weight, the svelte Agera R is clouds lighter than the Veyron Super Sport with a dry weight of just 2,932 lbs. And we all know what a lighter car translates too, right? PHOTOS
Posts
