This One Of A Kind Hennessy Hypercar Puts The Dodge Demon To Shame

It was much easier to shock and impress with horsepower figures a decade or two ago. Take, for example, the Bugatti Veyron. It debuted in 2005 as a show-stopping hypercar with 1,001 hp. Not only did it mark the return of one of the greatest automakers ever known, but it really stood out compared to other offerings at the time, with "Top Gear" presenters Jeremy Clarkson and James May calling it a real "Concorde moment."

In the modern day, though, 1,000-hp vehicles are no longer quite as rare. That's not to say we're all driving around in 1,000-hp cars, but the reality is that four-figure horsepower counts just don't excite like they used to 20 years ago. It takes something really special to garner the same amount of attention in 2025, like a car that has twice the power of a Veyron — and some.

Well, that's exactly what all-American hypercar manufacturer Hennessey Performance delivered with its one-of-one Venom F5 LF, which was one of the wildest cars revealed at this year's Monterey Car Week. We'll dive into the details below, but here are the headline facts and figures: 2,031 horsepower, a manual transmission, and pure internal combustion power — no electrical trickery going on here.

Before the Venom F5's arrival, cars like the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon would leave gearheads in shock and awe with the most powerful iteration — the Demon 170 — kicking out a still-awesome 1,025 hp. Now, though, that figure is old news, as the Venom F5 LF redefines what a powerful car looks like in 2025. 

While a 1,025-horsepower drag-prepared, street-legal muscle car is more powerful and impressive than 99% of anything else on the road, it really does look quite simple and understated in comparison to the Venom F5 LF. It's worth mentioning that other iterations of the Venom, such as the Venom F5 Evolution, also boast 2,031 horses, but this is the only Venom thus far to have an old-school six-speed gated manual transmission. It's that transmission which separates it from considerably cheaper performance options, too; the SRT Demon, for example, only ever had an an auto 'box. 

While the Demon houses a 6.2-liter supercharged Hellcat engine, the Venom F5 LF sports a 6.6-liter engine boasting two turbochargers, dubbed the Fury V8. It is the most expensive and complex build Hennessey has completed to date, and it shall remain a one-of-one build. While Koenigsegg may hold the title of the most powerful production car ever made with its hybrid Gemera, Hennessey's Venom Evolution — including this LF — is the most powerful pure internal combustion road car. That said, the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 remains the most powerful muscle car ever built.

The Venom F5 LF, with its Venom Evolution-inspired bodywork, all-new interior layout, and mighty power output, marks the launch of Hennessey Performance's new "Maverick" division, which allows customers to realize their ultimate automotive dreams. John Hennessey, company founder and CEO, had this to say about the division: "When our customers have a dream, we work to make their dreams come true — exceeding customer expectations is a badge of honor."