New 850hp Blackbird is manual, 'analogue overload'
The third box-fresh hypercar in Hennessey history is an ode to naturally aspirated, rear-drive fun
Another day, another multi-million-pound hypercar. But there’s plentiful cause to declare this one a little different. The Hennessey Blackbird is only the Texas firm’s third all-new model, and it arrives with a notably different remit to those before it. Out goes the target of ultimate, 300mph-plus speed; in its place, a focus on maximum engagement. “Analogue overload,” to quote Hennessey itself.
“Blackbird was guided by a simple idea: to deliver an analogue experience where beauty and drama define every moment,” says boss John Hennessey. “This is not a numbers car. We set out to create an unparalleled emotional experience, from the first time you see it to the moment you take the wheel and feel the connection between driver and machine.”
So while it still does the numbers – 850hp, 220mph, 0-60mph in 2.5 seconds and a 9,000rpm-plus redline are all touted – the greater headlines surely go to its open-gate, exposed-linkage six-speed manual gearbox, unelectrified rear-drive layout and an interior notable for its complete absence of screens. Its 6.2-litre V8 is naturally aspirated and has been developed with the help of NASCAR legends Ilmor Engineering, whilst you must slot your phone into “a bespoke Hennessey holster” to use its functions on the move. The Blackbird is everything we’ve all been crying out for. Albeit at 2.5m dollars before taxes.
The name’s likely to tickle the neck hairs of a certain subset of car enthusiast, too. Hennessey acquired the Blackbird naming rights to officially pay tribute to the Lockheed SR-71 reconnaissance plane of the same name. The launch colour alone tells you this is far from an overwrought pastiche; its most obvious visual links to the airborne Blackbird are the creases along its side pods and those vertical, actively raised winglets at the back. Proof this car isn’t mired in lofty aerodynamic goals comes from the 71mph activation point and 71-degree angles once deployed.
Further doses of fun come from the quad exhaust layout, mirrored inside by the air vent and cupholder arrangement, the latter large enough for two coffee cups and two slim Red Bull cans, we’re told. Those crib from the design of another, arguably even more iconic plane: the Bell X-1 that Chuck Yeager took beyond the speed of sound in 1947, the first man and machine to do so.
You might need those Red Bulls, too. One of the Blackbird’s development targets is “to comfortably cover more than 800 miles in a single day and to feel at home on highways, mountain roads, and destination drives.” That means a focus on visibility and refinement, plus more cabin room than Hennessey’s outgoing Venom F5 and enough frunk volume for two carry-on bags. It’s conceived as a road car above all else – music to the ears of anyone deterred by the dizzying downforce and lap times quoted by the W1s and F80s of this world. This appears to be a different car entirely.
“What everyone has been clamouring for is a return to a material connection,” design chief Nathan Malinick tells PH. “From the outset, the phrase ‘analogue overload’ just kind of stuck in our minds as a driving force behind what we were going to do. Performance has become a bit cheap. When you can buy a Tesla Plaid and basically just smoke everything off a straight line you have to reevaluate why cars like this even exist. This is our collective dream car. Manual, analogue, rear-wheel drive, naturally aspirated, and you can fit luggage in it.
“It'll be a very, very exotic-sounding and feeling car to drive and to rev out. You have a massive tacho right in the middle to make the most of that. We're not looking to go set any kind of record, on track or otherwise. This is purely about the enjoyment and the interaction of the drive.”
The Blackbird is limited to 71 units, over half of which are currently accounted for. And yes, lots of those will be painted black. Production isn’t due to commence until 2029, by which point the Venom F5 will have fully exited the building. We can expect the newcomer – and variations of it – to live a similarly long production life, though Nathan confirms the team’s not even begun to think about what’s next. Appears pretty on point as it is, no?
For me, the template for stunning modern car design is set by GMA S1LM:
As for the hennessey, it kind of gives me aspark owl vibes.
Good to see an american design that doesn’t actually look like an american design. Also, that’s a huge f
king steering wheel.Why is it so thin?
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