is a Swedish manufacturer of high-performance cars based initially in Olofström, later moving to Margretetorp, just outside Ängelholm. The company was founded in 1994 by Christian von Koenigsegg with the intention of producing a world-class supercar. Based on Formula One technology, the car was required to be a two-seater, midengine layout with a hardtop. First they intended to get an engine from another manufacturer, but later choose to design and build their own.
Christian von Koenigsegg got the idea to build his own car after watching the Norwegian puppet movie Pinchcliffe Grand Prix in his youth.
The Koenigsegg CC prototype was unveiled in 1997 after undergoing intense road and wind tunnel testing. The production prototype was finally unveiled to the public and press at the 2000 Paris Motor Show. The first customer took delivery of a red CC 8S in 2002 at the Geneva Auto Show, and four more cars were built that year. Koenigsegg was established in Asia later that year with a premier at the Seoul Auto Show. In 2004, the new CCR was unveiled at the Geneva Auto Show. On 28 February 2005, at 12:08 hrs local time, in Nardo, Italy, the CCR broke the record for the fastest production car in the world, having attained 387.87 km/h (240.91 mph), breaking the record previously held by the McLaren F1. The record was held until September 2005 when the long awaited Bugatti Veyron broke the record again at 400 km/h (248.5 mph), though this has yet to be proven.
The CCR and the CC8S are both unique in that they are fully adjustable, like a race car, so that the owner can set the car to run optimally for any track or street it is driven on.
In February 22, 2003, one of Koenigsegg's production facilities caught fire and burned to the ground.The fire was extinguished with help from 40 firefighers from different fire departments (Ängelholm, Hjärnarp, Strövelstorp, Bjuv and Helsingborg), villagers from Margretetorp, and passers-by. About 15 Koenigsegg cars, body parts, machines, and engines were saved before the fire got out of control. The cause of the fire was determined to be a short-circuit in the company kitchen dishwasher, which then spread to the roof, which was stuffed with hay. On the same day, the Koenigsegg cars took refuge at the nearby former Swedish Airforce Base F10, near the town of Ängelholm, which lies in the southwestern-most part of Sweden. After a few days, the decision was made by von Koenigsegg that they would stay within the former wing to rise from the ashes.
The phantom insignia on the Koenigsegg is a tribute to the Swedish squadron that operated from the F10 base, which had the ghost as its emblem. |
