SUBSCRIBE TO THE
MAGAZINE NOW
Facebook-f Instagram

Watch a Koenigsegg annihilate the production record at Spa-Francorchamps

22 July, 2015

 

The crazy team at Koenigsegg have underlined the sublime performance of their new Agera One:1 by thrashing the production lap record of Belgium’s illustrious Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. Clocking in at 2min 32.14, the Koenigsegg beats its nearest rival by almost six seconds. Check out the memorable on-board video below:

This is the second time that Koenigsegg have had a crack at the Spa record, following a successful attempt in June where they managed to set a lap record of 2min 33.26s — beating the previous benchmark set by a McLaren P1 — a car New Zealand Classic Car magazine featured earlier in 2015.

What makes official Koenigsegg test driver Robert Serwanski’s lap particularly impressive is how he is forced to weave through dense traffic from start to finish. Yet despite the conditions, the One:1 manages to hit 270kph on the approach to Eau Rouge, before reaching a mind-boggling 320kph just before piling on the brakes at the bus stop.

Brand founder Christian von Koenigsegg had initially suggested that the One:1 would try and take down the lap record at Germany’s infamous Nürburgring. But after a speed ban was imposed at the facility due to safety concerns, Spa was the most logical replacement playground for the brand to set their 1341hp monster loose.

The record has been toppled just as motorsport royalty from around the world prepare for the 24 Hours of Spa, held on July 25–26. Included in that list is Kiwi V8 Supercar ace Shane van Gisbergen, as well as Australian motorsport legend Craig Lowndes.

NZ Classic Car magazine, March/April 2025 issue 398, on sale now

23 February, 2025

An HQ to die for
Mention the acronym HQ and most people in the northern hemisphere will assume this is an abbreviation for Head Quarters. However, for those born before the mid-’80s in Australia and New Zealand, the same two letters only mean one thing – HQ Holden!
Christchurch enthusiast Ed Beattie has a beautiful collection of Holden and Chevrolet cars. He loves the bowtie and its Aussie cousin and has a stable of beautiful, powerful cars. His collection includes everything from a modern GTSR W507 HSV through the decades to a 1960s Camaro muscle car and much in between.
In the last two Holden Nationals (run biennially in 2021 and 2023), Ed won trophies for the Best Monaro and Best Decade with his amazing 1972 Holden Monaro GTS 350 with manual transmission.
Ed is a perfectionist and loves his cars to reflect precisely how they were on ‘Day 1,’ meaning when the dealer released them to the first customer, including any extras the dealer may have added or changed.

You’re the one that I want – 1973 Datsun 240K GT

21 February, 2025

In the early 1970s, Clark Caldow was a young sales rep travelling the North Island and doing big miles annually. He loved driving. In 1975 the firm he worked for asked Clark what he wanted for his new car, and Clark chose a brand-new Datsun 240K GT. The two-door car arrived, and Clark was smitten, or in his own words, he was “pole vaulting.”
Clark drove it all over the country, racking up thousands of miles. “It had quite a bit of pep with its SOHC 128 hp (96kW) of power mated to a four-speed manual gearbox,” he says. Weighing in at 1240kg meant the power to weight ratio was good for the time and its length at almost 4.5 metres meant it had good street presence.
Clark has been a car enthusiast all his life, and decided around nine years ago to look for one of these coupes. By sheer luck he very quickly found a mint example refurbished by an aircraft engineer, but it was in Perth.