The Truth about Koneigsegg?

[Tom73]

Streetrod said:

One of the fundamental rules when building a custom car is that once you have signed off the design you don’t change it, the consequences of even a minor change can have major knock on effects to both the costs and the time to build. Those effects would be multiplied in this case because you are also trying to build a car to recently changed US regulations requiring things like intelligent airbag systems etc. Pagani have had to push back their introduction into the US because of the same reasons and the 4 million dollar cost of implementing the new airbag systems. And they have a great deal more deposable cash than Koenigsegg have.

I wonder how BC would have reacted if he had put down an early deposit on the Veyron when it was still in development. Would his much loved brand still be held in such high esteem considering the overruns that project experienced? I suspect not if his recent behaviour is anything to go by.

Spot on. It's strange to see such a seasoned collector sign the dotted line not knowing what to expect.

And like you say this is not a problem restricted to your Paganis, Koenigseggs or Gumperts either. The MP4-12C is still being sorted. The Veyron had massive overheating issues; reference almost getting it's ass kicked by a Macca F1 due to it...

He's got a ton of Porsches in his sig and it's no secret the Carrera GT had it's fair share of problems in everything from the clutch to the suspension. Most certainly there's some glitches to be expected from the 918 Spyder he's waiting on as well so will we have to add Porsche to his long list of undesirables along with Pagani, Koenigsegg and other hunks of st? It's a 200 mph hybrid for crying out loud... he's bound to have at least two heart attacks in the process if a few paint bubbles causes this reaction...


Some people just aren't meant to own the fidgety handmade pseudo race cars in the top echelon. They're simply better off sticking with "measly" 400k production cars with well oiled robots doing assembly and platforms implemented are slightly tuned versions of what your average soccer mom drives to the store. Excellence is a arduous process and it doesn't always pan out at the first attempt. If you're not into the process you're out of the loop.

[Colonial]

Why do I get the unshakeable feeling that he is a trust fund baby who has never had to work a day in his life and therefore has always had things go his way in the past?

I don't think anyone comes out of this looking good.

[twoblacklines]

Why has everyone read the Koniegesegg press statement as gospel truth? It is not like they are going to admit fault... they are full of excuses but you guys on here simply start going on about trust fund babies... Ever considered that CvK may be lying?

Where have you even got the conclusion that BC kept changing spec from?

Seems to be a lot of hate for him from people who dont have his finances hmmm.

[Colonial]

twoblacklines said:

Why has everyone read the Koniegesegg press statement as gospel truth? It is not like they are going to admit fault... they are full of excuses but you guys on here simply start going on about trust fund babies... Ever considered that CvK may be lying?

Where have you even got the conclusion that BC kept changing spec from?

Seems to be a lot of hate for him from people who dont have his finances hmmm.

I have no issue with wealthy people.

I have issues with people who have a sense of entitlement and expect everything to go their own way, and the sycophantic ego strokers that surround them. No matter what their bank statement.

Hope that helps.

[12v3pot]

twoblacklines said:

Why has everyone read the Koniegesegg press statement as gospel truth? It is not like they are going to admit fault... they are full of excuses but you guys on here simply start going on about trust fund babies... Ever considered that CvK may be lying?

When there are two sides to a story, people tend to look at how each side presents itself . The contrast between BC and CvK could not be bigger. The whining sense of entitlement and threatening bile that's etched into everything BC wrote is -like it or not - going to paint a picture. An unflattering self-portrait, in this case.

In contrast, CvK comes across as conciliatory and professional. It's that simple.

twoblacklines said:

Seems to be a lot of hate for him from people who dont have his finances hmmm.

That's an easy explanation I suppose. Well, I can only speak for myself, and I only know one other person with that sort of wealth. And I don't have any such problem with him. So it must be something other than BC's millions that make me dislike him, eh?

[NRS]

twoblacklines said:

Why has everyone read the Koniegesegg press statement as gospel truth? It is not like they are going to admit fault... they are full of excuses but you guys on here simply start going on about trust fund babies... Ever considered that CvK may be lying?

Where have you even got the conclusion that BC kept changing spec from?

Seems to be a lot of hate for him from people who dont have his finances hmmm.

You seem to be the only one mentioning money in this discussion. Seems like you might be the person who is money focused.

And I'm sure everyone has their own little story, but money is not the issue. I have a friend who I met through a PH drinks, who has a Enzo, F40 etc. He's an amazing guy who made his own company with some friends and did really well. Totally down to earth and a massive car nut. He's also very realistic with his expectations. He knows companies like Koenigsegg and Pagani will have issues, and so he just doesn't buy one as he's not willing to take that risk. Ben seems like he went into this expecting to buy it and that's it.

Why would he buy a car from them if he thought they were in such a bad financial situation in the first place?

[aeropilot]

twoblacklines said:

Seems to be a lot of hate for him from people who dont have his finances hmmm.

A dhead is a dhead.....how much money they have in the bank is immaterial.

[Ali_T]

acespizee said:

I think the name of this site should be called dheads instead of pistonheads, in reference to the Seemingly jealous, hateful and just all round loser mentality that the majority of this community seem to have.

Haters.

What a joke.

There are plenty of nice rich people. I have a number of them as clients and some are hardcore car enthusiasts that I can spend hours talking with. They're all a pleasure to deal with and none of them come across as a spoiled, and borderline illiterate, brat the way the subject of this thread does. There are nice ways to deal with problems with a custom order and sort out problems. He doesn't seem to know any of them, preferring to shout and swear about it on an internet forum. My opinion of him is based on his behaviour, not his bank balance. Said behaviour is pathetic and gets no sympathy from me. I doubt he cares. He's probably off to shout at the next poor sod he placed an order with because they left the blue M&Ms in the bowl....

twoblacklines said:

Why has everyone read the Koniegesegg press statement as gospel truth?

Well, it's written in English for a start, which is a step up from BC's posts.

Edited by Ali_T on Sunday 5th May 23:26

[vtgts300kw]

Otispunkmeyer said:

Would love to know what he does for a living! Does he do high end car customisation and dealing? Or something like that? Film industry? Porn industry? (It is Hollywood afterall)

As on the previous page, he is a from a wealthy East Asian family.

[German]

twoblacklines said:

Why has everyone read the Koniegesegg press statement as gospel truth? It is not like they are going to admit fault... they are full of excuses but you guys on here simply start going on about trust fund babies... Ever considered that CvK may be lying?

Where have you even got the conclusion that BC kept changing spec from?

Seems to be a lot of hate for him from people who dont have his finances hmmm.

Honestly? Go back to being one of his ego massagers someone so aptly described earlier. The only person bringing up money here seems to be you. How do you know they are full of excuses? Why would the owner of a business lie about a customer in public, openly? Surely this would just be digging a deeper hole?

I happen to be in a position as an Expat where I know plenty of rich people, mainly through their children I went to school with. I am in no way rich. I drive a Porsche that is older than I am. In short, I'm friends with these people for lots of reasons, and money isn't one of them. The are all interesting, inteligent, nice people, who I enjoy spending time with. This BC bloke sounds like none of the above personaly. Mostly through coming across as a .

[toppstuff]

After reading this thread I am of the view that Koeniggsegg and Christian Koeniggsegg have tried to be accommodating.

The owner lacks any sense of perspective, grace or any proper understanding of the cars he purports to love.

I'm trying to be polite on a public forum, but the owner is an idiot.

[monthefish]

Zod said:

I'd be as pissed off as BC is, but to make the comment about some of the issues being what he'd expect of a 400k car is first order aholery.

Disagree.

You might compare a car's interior to "something you'd expect from a £1k car" which, to someone from the Mumbai slums, would make you out to be guilty of aholery.

He's just a consumer in a different level of the market to you or I.

[monthefish]

rj1986 said:

Stig said:

Some spoiled, never-worked-a-day-in-his-life, American rich kid I imagine.

that rich git over there said:

"I can't speak for Koenigseggs personally as i haven't been around them that long, but it has always irked me why are they almost non-existent in Saudi Arabia (and the Middle East as a whole) which is the biggest market for these cars. I live in a pretty small city and we have like 10 Veyrons here so after all the hype it was always disappointing to see the lack of interest people had in the product."

Dad owns an oil field or 12

The second bit you quoted, was posted by BG, not BC (the owner of the Agera)

[will_]

LocoCoco said:

Almost everyone seems to be ignoring the incident that triggered BC's rant online. The K'egg rep that posted saying BC had nothing but good things to say about the car sparked it all off.

He was behaving perfectly normally until it was made personal, on his very own website too.

If you're going to mis-quote somebody, expect them to air their side pretty soon afterwards. It wouldn't be unfair to exaggerate and lie either in BC's shoes (not saying he is), I mean, that's how they treated him.

Indeed - Koenigsegg's response completely missed dealing with this key issue.

[Bushi]

monthefish said:

Disagree.

You might compare a car's interior to "something you'd expect from a £1k car" which, to someone from the Mumbai slums, would make you out to be guilty of aholery.

He's just a consumer in a different level of the market to you or I.

But thinking that the interior of a £1m+ limited run sports car should be, or could be, better than a lower priced mass produced item possibly from a huge manufacturer shows a total lack of understanding of the market or production methods and rather skewed priorities.

But I cant be sure because his description of it "sucking balls" means nothing to me.

[Zod]

monthefish said:

Zod said:

I'd be as pissed off as BC is, but to make the comment about some of the issues being what he'd expect of a 400k car is first order aholery.

Disagree.

You might compare a car's interior to "something you'd expect from a £1k car" which, to someone from the Mumbai slums, would make you out to be guilty of aholery.

He's just a consumer in a different level of the market to you or I.

I don't agree. There is no standard at 400k or at 1m+. To suggest that there is one that can be compared with the Agera is ridiculous. It' s a stupid comment by him. The comparison with somebody from the Mumbai slums doesn't stand up.

[monthefish]

Zod said:

There is no standard at 400k or at 1m+.

I don't follow you.

Of course there's a standard. The cost of producing a car is influenced by literally thousands of factors. More spend on one aspect on the car (suspension, for example) means less available to spend on another (interior fittings for example). At £400,000, a balance still has to be struck, meaning that, even at this price point, a compromised interior is very possible indeed. (e.g Ferrari F40)

Zod said:

The comparison with somebody from the Mumbai slums doesn't stand up.

My point being, UK hacks (and consumers) will often use a phrase such as 'an interior befitting of a £XXX level car' in a derogatory way, however there are other people in this world who would class that very same £XXX level car as being luxurious/beautiful/well finished. It's all relative, and it's clear that this chap has a very different reference point to the rest of us.

[Engineer1]

twoblacklines said:

Why has everyone read the Koniegesegg press statement as gospel truth? It is not like they are going to admit fault... they are full of excuses but you guys on here simply start going on about trust fund babies... Ever considered that CvK may be lying?

Where have you even got the conclusion that BC kept changing spec from?

Seems to be a lot of hate for him from people who dont have his finances hmmm.

CvK may be lying by BC is coming off as a spoilt sweary rich kid who wants the very best and won't be satisifed till he has it but equally as it won't match his perfect dream.

[Zod]

monthefish said:

Zod said:

There is no standard at 400k or at 1m+.

I don't follow you.

Of course there's a standard. The cost of producing a car is influenced by literally thousands of factors. More spend on one aspect on the car (suspension, for example) means less available to spend on another (interior fittings for example). At £400,000, a balance still has to be struck, meaning that, even at this price point, a compromised interior is very possible indeed. (e.g Ferrari F40)

Zod said:

The comparison with somebody from the Mumbai slums doesn't stand up.

My point being, UK hacks (and consumers) will often use a phrase such as 'an interior befitting of a £XXX level car' in a derogatory way, however there are other people in this world who would class that very same £XXX level car as being luxurious/beautiful/well finished. It's all relative, and it's clear that this chap has a very different reference point to the rest of us.

Are you seriously suggesting that you'd look at a 400k car next to a 1m car and be able to say that you could see a difference in standard of the interior that was appropriate to the price points?

[Orichalon]

Zod said:

Are you seriously suggesting that you'd look at a 400k car next to a 1m car and be able to say that you could see a difference in standard of the interior that was appropriate to the price points?

Obviously you're not going to improve much on the interior of a 400k car, but I would still expect it to feel more special in some way, even if this is in part intangible. It's not an unreasonable expectation.