Hennessey is best-known for its tuned monstrosities, ranging from 1,000-horsepower six-wheel pickup trucks to 1,000-hp Mustangs, 1,000-hp Camaros, you get the point. So it’s easy to forget the Texas tuner also makes one of the world’s most extreme hypercars. Naturally, we’re talking about the Venom F5, which goes way beyond 1,000 hp. This particular manned missile packs 2,031 hp nestled behind the driver.
Arguably more important for enthusiasts, however, is the latest version’s manual transmission. The Venom F5-M has an honest-to-goodness six-speed stick, directly connected to shafts and gears that directly turn just the rear wheels. It’s a gated manual to boot, and if you’re keeping track, Hennessey says it’s the most powerful manual-transmission production car in the world. And CarBuzz just learned it won’t be the last.
Hennessey Loves Manual Transmissions
Hennessey Venom F5-MMichal Okosnki/CarBuzz/Valnet
We sat down with Nathan Malinick, Hennessey’s design director, to chat about a few things. In a world where any manual transmission is extremely rare, one bolted to over 2,000 hp is a topic we couldn’t ignore. The good news for enthusiasts: both Malinick and company founder John Hennessey love manuals. But they have to be authentic manuals.
“I think, if you look across the board, what our customers want is the drama,” said Malinick. “They want the story. They want the experience. They want something that they can connect with a material, authentic connection with the car, not synthetic.”
While Malinick never mentioned brands like Koenigsegg or Ferrari, both of which offer electronic manual shifters to operate multi-clutch gearboxes, we picked up on a little shade being thrown in that direction. Koenigsegg’s shifter actually turns the company’s nine-speed auto into a six-speed on the CC850. More recently, Ferrari revealed its own simulated manual for the 12Cilindri Manuale. Both include clutch pedals to simulate the full engagement experience, but it’s all completely artifical.
“You see a lot of synthetic attempts at like a six-speed or a gated gearbox, and it’s cool. But it doesn’t compare to a true linked mechanical, you know, clutch-pedal in, first-gear experience. And you throw in all the five senses, like I said – the sound, the smell, the look, the feel. That’s what they want.”
-Nathan Malinick, Hennessey design director
More Manuals To Come, Including the F5’s Successor
Hennessey Venom F5-MMichal Okosnki/CarBuzz/Valnet
The F5 is an extremely niche vehicle. Malinick said the most popular F5 variant was the Revolution Roadster, the open-top version that was focused for track duty, and just 12 of those were made. But he believes the new F5-M with its six-speed will eclipse that as being the most popular F5 of them all.
“I will say though, the manuals are on pace to outdo [the Revolution] because it’s just so crazy,” he said. “It’s what people want. Everyone wants a manual. Like our next year and a half of building cars, they’re all manuals.”
That’s just for F5 production. Looking further down the road, Malinick confirmed that a successor to the F5 is in the works. And it, too, will have a manual. Try as we might though, we couldn’t get him to spill any more details. But it’s safe to say that it will really be something considering the current car packs a 2,000-hp punch.
What About That Top Speed Record?
Hennessey Venom F5-MMichal Okosnki/CarBuzz/Valnet
We suspect the F5’s successor will remain a mystery until Hennessey finally takes a stab at the official production car speed record. The car’s name is actually a nod to the 300-mph barrier – in the old Fujita scale for measuring tornados, F5 was the highest level with wind speeds from 251 to over 300 mph. In theory, the car is capable of such speeds. Hennessey hasn’t approached that benchmark just yet. But it’s not done trying just yet.
“It’s something that we’re actively working towards,” said Malinick. “It’s something that is way harder than people imagine. We are actively working towards it, and we’ll get back to you when we have something to tell you.”
A Venom F5 was pushing the envelope during speed runs in July 2024 when it crashed out at over 250 mph. Testing was taking place at the old Space Shuttle runway in Florida at the time, and the driver walked away without injury. So yeah, going really fast isn’t easy. But per Malinick, that’s what the F5 is all about.
“With this car, yeah, that’s the purpose of this car,” he said.
