E85 Fuel Boosts Supercar Output to 1,485 Horses

Hennessey Performance Engineering has tuned the 2016 edition of its Venom GT supercar to make a staggering 1,451 hp—up 207 hp from the already ultra-potent 2015 model.

Hennessey will take the wraps off the new Lotus-based Venom GT at this week’s Specialty Equipment Market Assn. show in Las Vegas.

The power increase is attributed to changes that allow the car’s twin-turbocharged 7.0-liter V-8 engine to run on E85 ethanol-based fuel. E85 increases the turbocharger boost pressure to 26 psi from 19 psi, according to the Houston-based tuner company.   

Hennessey hasn’t tested the car on the track yet. But it estimates the new Venom will be able to rocket from zero to 60 mph in just 2.4 seconds and reach 100 mph in 4.4 seconds. Top speed is expected to be more than 280 mph, which would be about 10 mph faster than the outgoing model’s time of 270.4 mph set at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida earlier this year.

Production will be limited to a handful of vehicles, according to Hennessey. The company says it is working on a new model, the Venom F5, that will handle better and be even faster.