Key Takeaways
- Client feedback shapes new Hennessey supercar – focused on driver engagement over record-breaking performance.
- Potential new engine for ‘American Carrera GT successor’ – high-revving and naturally aspirated with a manual transmisison for ultimate driving experience.
- Multiple body styles planned – a continuation of Hennessey’s product planning to prove itself a serious contender in the supercar market.
- 6×6 ‘Project Deep Space’ hyper-GT delayed to focus on this project.
Hennessey Special Vehicles is on a mission to change perceptions, establishing itself as a bona fide supercar manufacturer and not a fly-by-night operation. To do that, simply producing the Venom F5 and its variants is not enough, which is why it had previously announced the development of an electric 6×6 hyper-GT with four seats called Project Deep Space. But as we’ve previously established from an interview with director of design Nathan Malinick, Project Deep Space has been delayed. That’s not because Hennessey hasn’t been able to stick to its product timeline but because it decided to prioritize a supercar of a different sort, something founder and CEO John Hennessey has described as an American successor to the Porsche Carrera GT.
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What Happened To Hennessey’s 6×6 Project Deep Space?
Codenamed Project Deep Space, the six-wheeled hypercar has been put on ice… because of ICE.
While speaking to Malinick, CarBuzz was eager to find out more about this project. Cars like the Venom GT and Venom F5 have been incredible machines designed to topple records, but the new car – as yet unnamed – will be something entirely different. That’s because top speed, lap times, and even supreme power outputs won’t be central to its existence. No, the new Hennessey will exist for one reason and one reason only: maximum driver engagement.
Engagement Over Everything
Hennessey is playing its cards close to its chest, but the glimmer in Malinick’s eye when speaking of the unnamed supercar was impossible to miss. “I can’t really go into too much detail,” he says, telling us how they were “quite far along into Deep Space [when development pivoted to the new supercar.]”
The decision to stop development of one already-announced project and pursue another may sound surprising, but a recurring theme throughout our interview was how Hennessey wants to listen to what its clients have to say. “We listen to our customers, and they wanted something manual, high-revving, naturally aspirated, and super engaging. John Hennessey has already mentioned it being an American successor to the Carrera GT, and so that’s the next priority.”
Asked if he can give us a little more info, Malinick simply says that the new supercar “is not about setting records – it’s about engagement and enjoyment.”
An Engine Described As “Something Special”
The Porsche Carrera GT was an icon in its time and is still an icon today. Much of that is owed to the V10 at its heart, which was a Formula 1 engine left on the cutting room floor and repurposed for road use. That high-revving wail and instant throttle response is obviously something John Hennessey admires, but developing an all-new engine for a new supercar sounds like insanity. Still, it’s a possibility, maybe even a likelihood.
The ‘Fury’ V8 engine at the heart of the Venom F5 might sound like an obvious choice to power a new supercar. After all, it was developed bespoke for Hennessey and economies of scale mean using that architecture for more cars reduces the price. But that 6.6-liter motor features two turbochargers, and as John Hennessey originally stated and Malinick reaffirmed, the new car will be powered by something high-revving and naturally aspirated. Might Hennessey remove the turbos from the Fury V8 to turn down its 1,817-horsepower output? Maybe, but we don’t think the current 8,500 rpm rev ceiling is what John had in mind when he said ‘high-revving.’
“We love the V8 in F5, and we’re familiar with the platform, but we want to do something special and will decide what that is, whether it’s a V10 (our suggestion), or a V8, or something else.”
-Nathan Malinick, Director of Design
Multiple Body Styles Are A Possibility
When Hennessey launched the Venom GT, it created both coupe and convertible versions. The Venom F5 followed suit, with coupe and roadster variants of both the standard F5 and the F5 Revolution. So, will the American automaker do the same with its next project?
Malinick tells us that multiple body styles were always in the pipeline for Venom F5. “With Venom F5, we wanted these design styles, and we launched them pretty quickly because we wanted people to realize we were serious about this, serious supercar makers.” But for the new car? “Without going into details, that’s the type of philosophy we aim for. All our rivals have these variants of their cars, and that’s the market we aim for.” It’s not an explicit confirmation, but it seems likely coupe and roadster variants will be available.
When Do We Get To See It?
The frustration is visible when quizzing Malinick on this newcomer. He’s not frustrated about any detail about the car itself, but you can tell there’s a genuine passion for the project and that he has to limit what he says about it. That’s because Hennessey is being guarded about what to expect until it’s ready for the big reveal, which will be when exactly?
No timeline has been confirmed, but it’s been suggested that 2027 is when we’ll see the new car – that’ll be once the full production run of Venom F5s is complete. Considering Hennessey stopped Project Deep Space development midway through to focus on this, that’s not a bad timeline. And lest we forget, Hennessey has confirmed three all-new vehicles to arrive before 2031. That’s this unnamed supercar, Project Deep Space, and another project that hasn’t even been discussed publicly yet.
Whenever it does arrive, this American Carrera GT will be something special. But in a world where the next Bugatti is going to have a hybrid V16, not even natural aspiration and a manual gearbox can guarantee Hennessey the title of the most engaging contemporary supercar of the time.