Despite habitually building cars that produce well over 1,300 horsepower and can theoretically smash past 250 mph with the ease of a Saturn 5 rocket, Koenigsegg CEO Christian von Koenigsegg says top speed isn’t necessarily a priority for the company. He recently explained that customers are far more interested in excitement, drivability and overall performance. Yes, Koenigseggs are brutally fast in a straight line, but von Koenigsegg wants his company to be known for more than largely irrelevant top-speed figures.

“We would like to do such a test, but I have to say it’s not a super-high priority for us,” explained von Koenigsegg in a recent AMA on the company’s website. “It’s nice to be able to say you’ve got the fastest driven road car in the world and we believe that the One:1 could take the current record but for us, it’s a matter of priorities.”

He went on to elaborate on the challenges and logistics of top speed runs. Hypercars like the 2015 Koenigsegg One:1 are now so fast that it’s become a real challenge to find a strip of tarmac long enough to accommodate such a run. Von Koenigsegg estimates that a closed straight at least 10 kilometers long would be needed.

“VW’s Ehra-Lessien test track would be ideal, but they are not likely to allow a Bugatti competitor to use it,” said von Koenigsegg. “So far we have not found any airfield in the world long enough, the longest we found was around 5 km and this is about half the distance needed.”

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