Why the Koenigsegg CC850 is the world’s greatest hypercar

With over a thousand horsepower, lashings of carbon fibre and drop-dead gorgeous styling, the Koenigsegg CC850 is one of the most desirable cars in the world. Oh, and it’s both a manual and an automatic. Yes, really.

Squint your eyes at the Koenigsegg CC850 and you might just get taken back to the 2000 Paris Motorshow, where Christian von Koenigsegg stunned the world by presenting his all-new supercar, the Koenigsegg CC8S.

If you look past its stunning retro styling, such as the soft, intricate headlights and simple, aero addenda-less body lines, the brand new CC850 is revolutionary in 2025.

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Okay, maybe it’s not all-new, because its carbon fibre chassis is based on the ludicrously quick Koenigsegg Jesko. Where that’s designed for pure speed though, the CC850 places an emphasis on style and the overall driving experience.

Drop yourself into the CC850’s interior and you won’t find any plastic in sight. It’s a feast of delicious-looking leather, carbon fibre, Alcantara, machined billet metal and wood. Even the pedals have been machined from billet aluminium, and there’s a set of analogue dials behind the round steering wheel.

What’s most impressive is that absolutely everything, bar the computer microchips and the leather hide, is made in house at Koenigsegg, where most manufacturers outsource part production to third-party companies. That means that Mr von Koenigsegg and his team can really engineer their obsessive attention to detail into every part.

Yet for all of its luxurious materials, fancy out-and-upwards opening doors, and proper infotainment system, the CC850 only weighs in at 1350kg. The whole body is made from carbon fibre, though the vast majority of it is painted to keep the car subtle, but it’s the engine and gearbox that are the real masterpieces here.

Behind the driver and passenger is a 5.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8 engine that produces a whopping 1350hp on special high-octane E85 fuel. You can still fill it up at your local pump though, and it will still produce around 1100hp on Tesco’s finest Momentum. Spicy.

The gearbox is an absolute masterclass of engineering, because it genuinely manages to be a two-in-one solution; both a nine-speed automatic and a six-speed manual at the same time. To keep it as simple as possible, there’s a total of nine gearing combinations inside the casing which the car can shift through itself – hence it’s a nine-speed automatic.

But thanks to some genius hydraulic gubbins, clever software and a total of seven separate clutches, you can use the physical third-pedal and gated gear lever to change gears too. The CC850 chooses from six of the nine gears when rowing through them manually, for ease of use and an old school feel.

There’s buckets of grip from its Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres and clever, race car style inboard suspension, which is computer controlled and can not only raise and lower the car, but is also genuinely comfortable.

Add to that a bespoke luggage set, removable targa-top roof and an exhaust note to die for; you can understand why Christian von Koenigsegg decided the CC850 would not only be an excellent way to celebrate 20 years of the CC8S, but a great 50th birthday present to himself. What a motor.

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