2008 Koenigsegg CCXR Coupe

The Swedish-based Koenigsegg Automotive Company was founded in 1994 by Christian von Koenigsegg as a high-performance (hypercars) sports car manufacturer. The supercar market is very competitive and few have succeeded in building a worthy contender. At just 22 years of age, the deck was certainly stacked against Mr. von Koenigsegg. However, his attention to detail, engineering prowess, and many years of development and prototyping led to the company's first street-legal production car delivery in 2002. It was regarded as one of the best supercars ever built and was given the World's Most Powerful Production Car title by The Guinness Book of World Records. Production of the CCX model, street legal in most countries including the U.S., began in 2006. This was followed by the CCXR, which had an engine built to Koenigsegg's own design. The engine was fully developed and assembled at their facilities in Angelholm. It was engineered to run on E85 ethanol instead of conventional petrol, making the world's first 'green conscious' supercar. It was powerful, lightweight, and complied with ever-increasing emissions regulations.

Under normal petrol, the CCXR's engine can produce 806 brake horsepower. When fueled by E85 ethanol, the car delivers 1,018 brake horsepower. Zero-to-100 km/h was achieved in just 3.1 seconds.

The CCX holds the 7th fastest lap time on the Top Gear test track, and the CCXR is even faster than its non-E85 powered sibling. It was named #1 Power Car by the German magazine Power Cars in 2008 and Forbes Magazine called the CCXR 'One of the 10 Most Beautiful Cars in History' in 2009.

The stunning performance of the Koenigsegg was complimented by an equally impressive design. They had Dihedral Synchrohelix doors, which open both outwards and upwards in a unique fashion to improve egress and ingress in close quarters. They also had a unique convertible top, thanks to the inherent structural rigidity of the car's carbon fiber monocoque, the roof can be removed. The top can be securely stowed away in one piece in the car's nose.

This particular CCXR example is the 41st Koenigsegg built and was originally destined for the Middle-Eastern market. It is one of eighteen examples CCXR models produced, and one of five currently in the United States. It is one of just three in the U.S. fitted with a manual transmission. It was first seen at the opening of Koenigsegg Abu Dhabi in October 2007, and later that month, it was displayed at the 2007 Middle East International Motor Show in Dubai. It remained on display at Koenigsegg Abu Dhabi for several months before it eventually returned to Sweden.

It was then offered as the second grand prize in the 2008 Cash and Cars Lottery, in support of the Alberta Cancer Foundation and Canadian Cancer Society. It was shipped to Bentley of Calgary, where it was displayed prior to the drawing. However, the winner, Louie Edgi of Norman Wells, Northwest Territories, Canada, opted to take a cash prize instead of the car. The Koenigsegg returned to Ängelholm, Sweden, and in 2009, it was sold to a U.S.-based customer.

At the time of purchase, the car was fitted with nine-spoke wheels, a new three-gauge dashboard, and a passenger-side airbag, and red rear side-markers were fitted for U.S. federalization. It had a black color scheme over two-tone black and white.

Its first owner, based in Florida, took delivery of chassis number 041 after the completion of the modifications in February 2010. A short time after taking delivery, it was featured in the fifth installment of the Fast and the Furious series, Fast Five. Its current and second owner acquired the car in 2012. Currently, the car has just 441 miles on its odometer.

During its time in Florida, and prior to the acquisition by its current caretaker, the car was given an updated suspension to new Agera specifications.

By Daniel Vaughan | Sep 2015