The SSC Ultimate Aero was always a curious speed machine. It is made in America for one thing, and much like the American Saleen S7 of a decade ago, it never rose to the level of superstardom many would’ve predicted. The SSC Ultimate Aero also held the dubious distinction of being the world’s fastest car, but only for a short space of time. That is a great record to have, don’t get us wrong; but everyone knows when you’re going for gold, getting silver is never quite good enough. The SSC Ultimate Aero reached a speed of 409.9 km/h (256.18 mph), 1.9 km/h more than the record of the Bugatti Veyron record of the time.
SSC have now announced a very exclusive five model run to bookend production of the Ultimate Aero. It will be called the XT. As these dramatic, photo-shopped pictures from SSC signify, the Ultimate Aero XT will now produce a herculean amount of power that’s liable to spawn a few twisters in the flat open plains from which SSC originates. The 6.8 litre, twin-turbo V8 engine will produce 970 kW. This means that the 2.8 second 0-100 km/h time of the regular car drops to 2.6 seconds and the top speed is increased to 439 km/h (273 mph).
These are figures close to that of SSC’s follow up car, the Tuatara. As is some of the under skin technology that will be employed. Like a 7-speed paddle shift gearbox with a triple disc carbon clutch, dual water-to-air intercoolers and high performance brakes. Pricing is yet to be announced on the Ultimate Aero XT, but we’re guessing it’ll probably be around the million billion mark. We’re also wondering why SSC have rendered it in identical red and black colours to the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport? Is SSC smarting for a top speed record comeback?
