Ä
ngelholm, Sweden. Population
39,612.Known for itssandybeach,
traditional cuckoowhistles, anda
family-run ice-creambusinesscalled
EngelholmsGlass.Anunlikely
location, youmight think, foracompany thatbuilds
someof theworld’smost extremecars.
Andyet, inadecommissionedair-forcebaseon
theoutskirtsof town, sits thehomeofKoenigsegg,
arguably the leader in theniche“hypercar”market.
Supersedingeven thevehiclesproducedbyFerrari
andLamborghini–mere“supercars”–Koenigsegg
hasbecomeknown for itshigh-spec technology,
incredibleperformancefiguresand telephone-
numberprice tags.Hypercarsare the toponeper
cent, andcompetition tobe thebest isfierce.
Sohowexactlydid these 1,500-horsepower
vehiclesendup in this two-horse town?Theanswer
lies insideavintagefighter-jethangar, behinda
decommissionedbut still slightlydisconcerting
Cold-Warmissile. It lieswithownerandnamesake
ChristianvonKoenigsegg,whohasagreed togivean
exclusive tourofhis factory, and the low-downon the
brand’s latestproject: aplan to reinvent theengine.
Unlikeyouraveragecarman,Koenigseggdoesn’t
haveadashingquifforadapper suit, rathera
smoothbaldhead, casual shirtandAppleWatch.
He’sdisarmingly relaxed, chattingabout the
moment that sparkedoffhis loveof cars:watching
celebratedNorwegianstop-motionanimationfilm
FlåklypaGrandPrix
(
ThePinchcliffeGrandPrix
).
“Iwasachildof sixor seven, and itwasana-ha
moment,”hesays, smiling. “Iwanted tobe that
bicycle repairman,makinga racingcarandsticking
it to theestablishment. Iwentoutof thecinemaand
starteddrawingcars.”Hesayshealso lovedHerbie–
Disney’sanimatedVW–but ironicallywasneverbig
on real cars. “Ididn’tknowwhoEnzoFerrariwas.”
Remarkably,he’shadno formal trainingasa
mechanic.Asachildhedismantledandfixedvideo
recorders, thenbuilt radio-controlledkit cars, and
graduated tobecoming the localmoped tuner
»
“Swedenisn’tacountrythatmakes
extreme-sportscars.Iremember
sayingtomyselfthisiscompletely
impossible”
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