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Hennessey Performance has been “making fast cars faster since 1991”, a 30-plus-year history that we look at in this article along with an eye to the future.
What Is Hennessey Performance?
When it comes to serious automotive performance, there are plenty of vehicles to choose from, whether it be in-house OEM divisions like Mercedes’ AMG arm or aftermarket companies like Alpina, both of which we discuss here. However, there is nothing quite like Hennessey Performance, the Texas-based tuner turned bespoke automotive manufacturer.
What began as a passion project by a man named John Hennessey more than 30 years ago has become a modern hot rod shop bursting at the seams with cutting-edge engineering and outrageous performance. The company tagline is “Making fast cars faster since 1991”, which is something of an understatement considering what Hennessey Performance is capable of.
That passion project from 1991 was based on the Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4, a high-performance variant from the factory with 300 horsepower. Under Mr. Hennessey’s wrenching, output jumped to 450 and led to awards in the Nevada Open Road Challenge, the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, and on the Bonneville Salt Flats. It also led to the founding of his eponymous company.
Hennesey’s Early Years
Initially, Hennessey Performance focused on cars like that potent 3000GT – think Toyota Supra and Mazda RX-7. But that soon gave way to a vehicle with a little more power – the Dodge Viper. By 1993, the first Viper Venom 500 was delivered to a customer, who would win his class in the Nevada Open Road Challenge. From here on out, Hennessey Performance became synonymous with increasingly crazy power from modified domestic vehicles.
Throughout the rest of the 90s, Hennessey built Viper-based Venoms with more and more power, ultimately leading to a twin-turbocharged brute dubbed Venom 800 that hit a top speed of 197 mph. In 2004, the company acquired the Lonestar Motorsports complex including a drag strip, which would later lead to the Tuner School, a facility dedicated to teaching and training vehicle tuners.
The Venom GT
It was around this time that Hennessey was also developing its first in-house build, the Venom GT. Based on a Lotus Elise chassis, this coach-built hypercar debuted in 2010.
With a 7.0L twin-turbo V8 mounted amidships making an astounding 1,244 hp and 1,155 lb-ft of torque paired with a 6-speed manual, this world-beating wild child with exotic lines clocked a 270-mph top speed in 2014. Little wonder that rockstar Steven Tyler of Aerosmith fame put one in his garage.
As the power figures ballooned, the names of their vehicles became equally fantastic. Take for example the Chevy Camaro ZL1 from 2017 that Hennessey Performance upgraded to make an even 1000 horsepower. As a foil to Dodge’s Demon – which Hennessey also modified – the company named this particular Camaro “The Exorcist”.
Hennessey’s Modern Portfolio
From a guy working on his car at home, Hennessey Performance has exploded into a world-class aftermarket vehicle tuning organization capable of design, engineering, manufacturing, assembly, testing on dedicated proving grounds, production, and quality control. All of which has been well-timed with the never-ending performance contests waged by Ford, GM, and Dodge in the last 10 or so years.
Granted, domestic high-performance vehicles go back much further, but as of 2018, Hennessey Performance built its 10,000th vehicle, which is a pretty incredible milestone. It’s a milestone built on the backs of some of the most amazing machines ever produced in Detroit. In fact, at the moment, Hennessey offers a whopping 26 different high-performance vehicles to choose from, including, cars, SUVs, and trucks. These are just a few of our favorites.
Ford Mustang Dark Horse
What’s better than a naturally aspirated 5.0L V8 making 500 horsepower? A supercharged version rated for 850 hp. That’s the starting point for Hennessey’s Mustang Dark Horse special. Highlights include a high-flow induction system, carbon fiber aerodynamic elements, and forged alloy wheels.
Ram Mammoth 1000
Ram’s TRX pickup truck is an obscene machine all by itself, packing a screaming Hellcat powertrain and a suspension setup practically begging to be hurled off a dune. It’s a vehicle equally begging for a company like Hennessey to get its wrenches on it. When they did, the result was the Mammoth 1000, a desert-racing monster with 1,012 hp and 969 lb-ft of torque. No big deal.
Chevrolet Suburban H650
Hennessey gets credit for keeping its vehicle nomenclature easy to understand. H650 means 650 horsepower, which in this case motivates a Chevy Suburban. The stock 6.2L V8 gains a supercharger, a high-flow intake system, chromoly pushrods, and a stainless-steel cat-back exhaust. It’s the perfect way to silence – or scare the pants off of – rowdy kids on the way to soccer practice.
Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing
Cadillac has been kicking keister and taking names in the super sedan segment for years. Its latest, and likely last, freakish four-door is the CT5-V Blackwing, a car with 668 hp. Under Hennessey’s stewardship, this already amazing sedan becomes what they call “Hercules in a tuxedo”, which translates to 1000 horses, 966 torques, and the glorious symphony of long-tube stainless steel headers.
Ford F-150 VelociRaptor 6×6
When indulging your trophy truck fantasies with a “regular” F-150 Raptor isn’t enough, Hennessey has your back with the 558-horse VelociRaptor. Need more than a hilarious name and associated badging? How about 6 wheels? In 6×6 trim, the VelociRaptor delivers, along with unique bumpers and an upgraded suspension. The Shelby F-150 Centennial Edition is cool, but the VelociRaptor 6×6 is on a different level entirely.
Venom F5
There’s car tuning and then there’s the Venom F5 hypercar. Born from the formation of Hennessey Special Vehicles in 2017, which is essentially a high-performance division of an already high-performance company, the Venom F5 is unlike anything the company has built before. It’s the result of this Special Vehicles arm deciding to build the fastest car in the world and in the process, take on the likes of Bugatti and Koenigsegg.
To do so, this hypercar starts with a carbon fiber tub on which more than 3,000 bespoke parts are fitted. The heart of the beast is a 6.6L twin-turbo pushrod V8 rated at a truly eye-popping 1,817 horsepower and 1,193 lb-ft of torque. Mounted behind the driver and named “Fury”, this powertrain is the, ahem, driving force behind Hennessey’s plan to go 311 mph.
Electrified Hennessey Performance
Are there other impressive machines built by Hennesey Performance? Oh yes, this just scratches the surface. Hennessey could be the sole exhibitor at shows like SEMA 2023 and no one would complain. They really are that impressive. And just because Hennessey has been focused on American V8 thunder for so long doesn’t mean they’re not preparing for the electrified future.
To that end, the company has announced plans for a vehicle that would sound like the fever dream of a madman if those plans came from literally anyone else. But when John Hennessey is behind something called “Project Deep Space”, a vehicle said to have 6 wheels, a $3 million price tag, and 2,400 horsepower provided by batteries – it doesn’t sound as crazy.
