Lamborghini Murcielago (bettorodrigues/Bigstock.com)
Aston Martin and Red Bull are joining forces to build the world's fastest road car, which boasts the unwieldy working title of “AM-RB001”. Aston claims the new car will be faster than a Formula One race car, while Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner said it will be “the ultimate of all road cars."
Red Bull Racing's chief designer Adrian Newey and Aston design head Marek Reichman will collaborate on the ambitious project, which will be designed with complete access to Red Bull's technological prowess, before being engineered by Aston's Special Operations unit.
In terms of how it might look, we only have a sweeping concept image to go on. We’ll have to wait until 2018 to see the final vehicle, of which only 100 will be built. And if the limited run doesn't make it a tricky motor to get hold of, the £1.8m-plus price tag will.
But while the boffins at Red Bull and Aston are busy making their new super car, we thought we'd look at the current top 10 fastest road cars on the planet...
- Bugatti Veyron Super Sport (268mph)
Bugatti Veyron EB (Dutourdumonde/Bigstock.com)
The fastest incarnation of the Veyron still features the original 8.0 litre, 16 cylinder engine.
- SSC Ultimate Aero (257mph)
Shelby Aero (Naiyyer/Bigstock.com)
Boasting a twin turbo V8 engine with 1183hp and a price tag of around £435,000, this Shelby Super Car bagged the ‘world's fastest car’ title for three years in a row.
- Saleen S7 Twin Turbo (248mph)
Saleen S7 (Christopher Halloran/Bigstock.com)
Another Stateside speed demon, this £300,000 car was built between 2005 and 2006. Thanks to its mid-engine layout it boasts boots in both the front and rear.
- Koenigsegg CCX (245mph)
Koenigsegg CCX (swisshippo/Bigstock.com)
This Swedish-built 4.7 litre twin-supercharged V8-engined car first came to the attention of millionaires in 2006.
- McLaren F1 (240 mph)
McLaren F1 (Dutourdumonde/Bigstock.com)
This UK-built supercar is still the world's fastest naturally-aspirated vehicle, powered by a BMW S70/2 60 V12 Engine. Only 106 were ever built.
- Jaguar XJ220 (217mph)
Jaguar XJ220 (g0d4ather/Bigstock.com)
Another British supercar, the Xj220 was developed as an after-hours project by Jaguar workers in the late Eighties. 281 were built and it even featured in its own video game.
- Ferrari Enzo (217mph)
Ferrari Enzo (bettorodrigues/Bigstock.com)
Named after Ferrari’s founder, only 400 Enzos were ever manufactured, making it a very difficult – and expensive – car to get hold of.
- Pagani Zonda C12 F (215mph)
Pagani Zonda C12 F (Dutourdumonde/Bigstock.com)
Debuting at the 2005 Geneva Motor Show, this Italian designed super car is now extremely rare.
- Lamborghini Murciélago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce (213mph)
Lamborghini Murcielago (bettorodrigues/Bigstock.com)
The 2009 version of the Murciélago became the fastest Lamborghini of all time.
- Porsche Carrera GT (205mph)
Porsche Carrera GT (Artzzz/Bigstock.com)
At £300,000, the Carrera GT doesn’t have an average price tag, but with a top speed of 205mph, it’s not your average Porsche.