Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Made in Sweden
Christian von Koenigsegg has turned his childhood dream into ground-breaking reality. Photo: Oskar Bakke
From pipe dream to pole position In 1994, Christian von Koenigsegg decided to pursue his childhood dream of creating the fastest car in the world. Today, the Koenigsegg luxury sports-car brand is a world phenomenon, and fresh from breaking no less than five world records, the Skåne-based company is looking to expand with a major recruitment drive. By Liz Longden
Last year, the Nevada desert saw something extraordinary. In a single bright November morning, one car broke an astonishing five world-speed records, including the highest top speed for a production vehicle (447.19 kilometres per hour) and the fastest time in 0-4000 kilometres per hour (33.29 seconds). The feat was performed on a single set of tyres, on a closed-off section of a state highway, and completed in time for lunch. The car was the Agera RS, produced by Koenigsegg. 48 | Issue 114 | July 2018
Based in Ängleholm in Skåne, southern Sweden, and currently with a team of less than 200, Koenigsegg is dwarfed by the size of its competitors in the field of ultra high-performance sports cars. Yet, an approach based on ground-breaking technical innovation and an obsessive striving after excellence have, against all odds, pushed the company to the very top of its field. “It’s a little bit like David and Goliath, in a way,” says Halldora von Koenigsegg,
chief operating officer, reflecting on the company’s quintuple record breaking success. “You’re there, without the same resources and backing as your competitors, and yet you manage to beat all the records, so of course it feels special.”
Incredible growth In fact, the Nevada triumph was merely the latest in a series of records that Koenigsegg has left broken in its wake, and its cars’ high performance and iconic styling have been receiving international acclaim for years. While this is, of course, welcome, it brings its own challenges. Demand for Koenigsegg’s cars has never been higher, and with major markets established in North America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Australia, all production slots sold for the next three years,