Riding on Michelin tyres, Koenigsegg Agera RS becomes world's fastest car

“ Koenigsegg Agera RS achieved an average top speed of 444.6 kmph on an 11 mile long stretch. The vehicle used was a customer car, shod with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres.”

Koenigsegg, the Swedish sportscar maker which made heads turn with its first car CC8S in 2002, has claimed a much famed pinnacle of being the best among the best. Beating the likes of Bugatti and Hennessey, Koenigsegg Agera RS is now, officially, the world's fastest production car.

In a scintillating drive brimming with adrenaline rush, Agera RS, shod with factory fitted Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres, achieved an average top speed of 444.6 kmph ( 277.9 mph ) on an 11 mile long emptied stretch to crown itself the fastest car in the world. This put an end to earlier claims made by the likes of Bugatti Veyron, Bugatti Chiron and Hennessey Venom GT of being the fastest cars.

Koenigsegg seems to be determined to hammer the top guns in the motoring world. Not very long ago, it had put Bugatti Chiron to shame by emerging 5 seconds quicker in the 0-249 mph-0 record. And now, it's the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport to lose its title to the Swedish hypercar by around 10 seconds.

At the helm of this run was the internal test driver of Koenigsegg- Niklas Lilja, driving the 1360 BHP, 1011 pound feet torque version, running on a 5.0 litre, bi-turbo engine. The only difference made to the vehicle was removal of the roll cage, something which is anyway optional on Agera RS.

While 444.7 kmph was the  average top speed of the two drive-runs, one of the legs saw the Agera touching a top speed of staggering 457.93 kmph, making it the fastest production car by any claims.

Niklas, who was fairly acquainted with the vehicle and its potential, had only one thing to worry about- the tyres. But this too was taken care of when Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres were used under supervision of the engineers from Michelin.

One of the engineers from Michelin explained how thermal resistance and stability played a key role in allowing a powerful car sustain the red line on the rev meter. Even the engineers were left pleasantly taken aback by the low amount of heat the tyres generated, as measured through the sensors on the RS.

While for now Koenigsegg can revel in all the adulations and envies, it would be interesting to see how the competitors fight back, especially with Hennessey F5 to be launched soon.

Needless to say, Christian von Koenigsegg's childhood dreams of making superfast cars is going to smash many a records in near future. What a delight it would be for us motoring enthusiasts!