► Koenigsegg’s Agera RS replacement lands
► Named after the CEO Christian Von Koenigsegg’s father
► Has 1600hp and ‘near light speed’ gearchanges
We’ve got new pictures of Koenigsegg’s megacar; the Jesko. After a debut at this year’s Geneva motorshow, the Swedish manufacturer has now revealed its fastest car yet with less people around it.
In fact, Koenigsegg says these images were captured in Lucerne, Switzerland. For some reason, these peaceful surroundings make the Jesko look even more extreme – just look at that rear-wing!
What’s a Jesko?
The rumours suggested it was going to be called the Raganrok, but they were wrong. Instead, it’s named after Jesko von Koenigsegg, the father of CEO Christian von Koenigsegg, which is an equally strong statement of intent.
It takes over from the Agera RS at the cutting edge of track-focused, road-legal cars for those looking for the ultimate in performance this side of a fighter jet. Or something.
Has it got a million horsepower?
Not far off – the redesigned 5.0 litre, twin-turbo V8 produces 1262bhp on standard petrol and a frankly baffling 1578bhp on E85 biofuel. That’s 1600 European horsepower.
It redlines at 8500rpm but it’s fair to say midrange performance will be pretty punchy too thanks to 1500Nm at 5100 rpm.
Twin ceramic ball-bearing turbos run at 1.7 bar (or 2.2 bar with E85), plus there’s some trick engine tech like a carbonfiber intake manifold and dry sump lubrication.
Give me more geeky details…
The Jesko has a flat-plane crank for an exciting engine note, and the crankshaft itself is milled from a single solid steel billet for lightness and strength.
Each piston has a curved face to reduce peak pressure while a ceramic coating on that face gets rid of hot spots to help stability when the engine runs at maximum power.
What we’re most excited about however is the new nine-speed Light Speed Transmission – a multi-clutch gearbox capable of upward and downward gear changes at what Koenigsegg says is ‘near light speed’, with the ability to jump between any pair of forward gears instantly, bypassing intermediate ratios. Cool.
Does it handle well?
Hard to say with any authority, but Koenigsegg reckons it’s the ultimate road-friendly track car, so it should be a bit of a weapon at the very least.
The Jesko has an all-new carbonfibre monocoque and features a Triplex Suspension system like the Agera it replaces – a horizontal damper at the back (and now front) of the car combats squat under hard acceleration.
With more than 1000 kilograms of downforce from an all-new rear wing, front splitter and rear diffuser, plus active rear steering system the Jesko should be agile and stable at speed too.
Is it very practical?
Not really, but steps have been taken this time around to make this extreme vehicle easier to live with – including a redesigned wrap-around windscreen for better visibility.
The Jesko is also 30mm taller and 40mm longer than the Agera, to allow for easier entry and exit from the more spacious cabin, enlarged by a carbon tub that is 40mm longer and 22mm higher. The dihedral synchro-helix door hinge has also been re-designed to open wider too.
Inside there’s a collection of luxury materials – leather, alcantara, carbon fibre and aluminium, with electrically operated seats trimmed in the customer’s choice of upholstery.
What about tech?
A new innovation called SmartWheel uses two small touchscreens housed in the Jesko’s steering wheel, for things like audio, phone, ride height and cruise control.
There’s also a new compact five-inch SmartCluster instrument screen mounted behind the steering wheel, which actually turns with the wheel, so you can always see it.
Plus, you know, gearchanges at near light speed.
A-Z of the 2019 Geneva motor show on CAR