km : Automotive News

It's pretty hard to believe, but Koenigsegg has been building high-powered sports cars in Sweden for fifteen years now. That's when the original CC was introduced, and all these years later, with just subtle design changes to create this new model, the Agera, the car still looks fresh and modern. There really is something to be said for the timelessness of so many simple, minimalist Swedish designs. Just ask Volvo or Saab, who sometimes go over a decade without really changing a model.

Along with design updates that include a slightly curvier hood and LED bars in the headlights, the Agera gives Koenigsegg a few performance updates as well. New brakes measuring over 15 inches in diameter at the front are cast in ventilated and drilled carbon ceramic, and the twin-turbo powerplant behind the seats has been further optimized to produce 910 hp. Torque is an equally impressive 811 lb-ft, with almost all of that available from 2680-6100 rpm. A new fast-acting traction control system keeps all that power in check, and should help keep this model on the Top Gear test track.

Inside, new technology is centered on "ghost light," an illumination system that uses invisible nanotubes to shine blue light right through the billet aluminum controls on the center console. It looks downright futuristic, like something right out of a concept car. Expect it to gain popularity among supercar builders. In addition to being the Swedish word "to act," Agera also draws its name from the Greek word "Ageratos," meaning ageless. Fifteen years in, that seems to fit Koenigsegg's design.

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