New Koenigsegg 'Sadair's Spear' lives up to name
Ultimate (for now) Jesko evolution gets more power, more aero, more brown
You might remember that the wild Koenigsegg Jesko hypercar was named in honour of company founder Christian von Koenigsegg’s father. From the outside, it seemed hard to know where subsequent iterations of Jesko might go as far as names are concerned, but not for CvK himself. See old man Koenigsegg liked to race horses half a century ago, and Jesko’s favourite racehorse - used in his final race in 1976, no less - was called Sadair’s Spear. Thus the even faster Jesko we have here is the Koenigsegg Sadair’s Spear. Good job he wasn’t riding Red Rum…
‘Fittingly, the car bearing this storied name is uncompromisingly engineered for peak track performance’, suggests Koenigsegg. And the 1,280hp Jesko was hardly struggling in that regard. There’s more power for starters, the 5.0-litre twin-turbo V8 treated to a redesign of its intakes; better airflow means better power, and with a calibration upgrade to take full advantage, the Sadair’s Spear is now 1,300hp strong. Or makes 1,625hp (up from 1,600hp) for those that run it on E85. The gearbox is the same flywheel-less Light Speed Transmission.
With 35kg less weight as well - less sound deadening, more carbon, new seats, those incredible model-specific wheels - the Sadair’s Spear exceeds the 1:1 power-to-weight ratio that Koenigsegg has become famous for. On E85, at least. The Jesko weighed in at 1,420kg, so we’d assume this is under 1,400kg. Plenty enough for 1,300hp or so…
Additional alterations include ‘enhanced’ ceramic brakes with better pads, an overhauled suspension setup with lighter springs and redesigned Triplex dampers, plus even wider Michelin Cup 2R tyres. Even the oil cooling has been improved, Koenigsegg seems adamant that the 30 Spears it makes will be used very hard indeed. It’s said to be more than a second faster than a Jesko Attack at the Gotland Ring. Which is a three-minute lap, sure, but to go any amount faster with just the extra 20hp or so is very impressive.
Certainly there’ll be no mistaking the Sadair’s Spear for your common-or-garden Jesko, what with the dramatic new aero kit. The top-mounted, double-blade rear wing is probably the most obvious example of that, which works in cahoots with new strakes underneath and the wheel arch louvres for high-speed stability. Check out as well the new canards up front that are large enough to be hammocks, plus different vents in the bonnet. The front-end changes complement the suspension work to ‘deliver extraordinary steering feedback and dynamic handling.’
Christian von Koenigsegg said: “Sadair’s Spear represents a natural progression for Koenigsegg—an impeccable balance of raw power, refined aerodynamics, and extraordinary road presence. This car is destined to set records. Achieving such track dominance in a fully road-legal vehicle is nothing short of remarkable.” All 30 are spoken for, and we’d expect cars to reach customers in 2026. After being seen at all the right summer shows in 2025, of course.
I enjoyed the article untill it said all had been pre sold just made me think meh in the end. But hey I am never going to own one so it doesn't matter
I enjoyed the article untill it said all had been pre sold just made me think meh in the end. But hey I am never going to own one so it doesn't matter
Assuming they have a nose-lift, it'd be permanently engaged to navigate my current city location. The b-roads that I happy blast around in an MX-5 would tear a Koenigsegg's side skirts and front splitter to shreds and fracture carbon wheels within a few miles. The local A-roads would be even more frustratingly slow with 1000+ more horsepower... and as for taking it to a local track, I suspect one would feel a bit of a prick.
Nice to look at, but arguably a complete waste of resources. I hope they break more records and rub Bugatti's nose in it
Assuming they have a nose-lift, it'd be permanently engaged to navigate my current city location. The b-roads that I happy blast around in an MX-5 would tear a Koenigsegg's side skirts and front splitter to shreds and fracture carbon wheels within a few miles. The local A-roads would be even more frustratingly slow with 1000+ more horsepower... and as for taking it to a local track, I suspect one would feel a bit of a prick.
Nice to look at, but arguably a complete waste of resources. I hope they break more records and rub Bugatti's nose in it
But otherwise yes, most will likely never see one, and if you do won't hear the noise of it
However Koeningseggggagh is such a compelling story and the list of innovations and different thinking, still peaks interest.
Imagine putting Murray and Koenigsegg in the same room & not letting them out until they had designed a new car.
Many of the reasons for doing so are perfectly valid. These are impractical cars. Expensive cars. Unrealistic cars. But these cars are more than anything rolling concept cars, technology demonstrators and poster cars. They're not meant to be practical, they're meant to explore the limits of what's possible and to raise the bar for more realistic cars. And maybe more importantly, to make us dream and feel like kids again, if only for a brief moment.
And I'm happy they exist. I'm likely never going to own one. But I'm probably never going to Mars either, yet the idea that there's people out there striving towards it and trying to manifest the dream, makes me giddy and hopeful and happy to be alive. There's more to life than merely cynical tangibles. And I'm sorry for those who can't share that experience and opts for a more cynical approach. But these are the types of people who would pull the beard off Santa to prove a point, and the only point they end up proving is that a) they can make kids cry, and b) Christmas is not for them. Which is sad. I guess to them Ebenezer Scrooge and the Grinch are more sort of standards to follow, rather than cautionary tales?
As for the car itself, it's utterly brilliant. Judging from the "standard" Jesko (if there is such a thing as "standard" Jesko), it has improved massively from the Top Gear lap in terms of launch and traction control algorithms, and this seeks to improve on that even further with more downforce and more rubber to the road. We could very realistically see a road biased, world homologated car with all the creature comforts and safety features and luxury, go quicker around the Top Gear track than the wildly compromised Valkyrie. And that's a fantastic accomplishment.
Back in the real world, where a car needs to be able to steer and absorb bumps in the road surface that are >5mm it'll have more clearance than depicted.
If my numbers came up and I could only have one hypercar, it would have to have a ghost on it.
https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/14324012
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