Texas Hypercar maker Hennessey revealed their newest model, the Blackbird, this morning, and it solidifies the automotive luddite sentiment as the newest form of exclusivity. The Blackbird takes its name from the SR-71 Blackbird, the legendary spy plane whose only defense was its top speed of over 2,000 mph. The Hennessey Blackbird doesn’t quite hit that number, but its top speed of 220 mph may certainly feel like it. Powering the beast is a 6.2-liter naturally-aspirated V8, good for 9,000 rpm and estimated to produce horsepower in the neighborhood of 800 to 850, but — unlike past Hennessey’s — the Blackbird is about more than metrics.
Outside, it certainly looks like a road-going version of its namesake. There are swooping lines, gaping intakes, and wing-like fins that all flash images of warplanes in your mind. There is an elegance to the design though, that departs from Hennessey’s usual rowdiness. If the Venom F5 is an F-22 Raptor, a cunning and caustic killer, the Blackbird is, well, the Blackbird, an intense and graceful marvel.
Hennessey
The inside, though, is where the Blackbird plays its hand. There are no screens, no haptic buttons, no paddles, just three pedals. Where the F5’s steering wheel was half-missing, and looked like you might accidentally eject yourself if you thumbed the wrong control, the Blackbird’s wheel is leather-swathed and holds not a single button. Hennessey, a brand whose identity is almost cartoonishly American, has made an analog hypercar, but what does that mean?
The newest but not the first
The Blackbird, Hennessey says, is a “deliberate counterpoint” to the complicated and bloated status quo of performance cars. “While performance is significant, it’s the experience that’s paramount,” they said, and they are not the first to act on this sentiment.
The upcoming Bugatti Tourbillon’s gauges are crafted by a watchmaker, Ferrari just released their first car with a manual transmission in almost 15 years, and Porsche made the 911 S/T a limited-edition dream car whose collectibility stems not from its performance, but from its engagement. Singer, Pagani, Gordon Murray, and others all make machines that put the connection between driver and car over everything else.
Hennessey
Hypercars are the nearly intangible phantoms of automotive passion, where everything is made perfect. They are the things of dreams, and while sometimes it can be difficult to decipher whether the dream follows the form of the hypercar, or the hypercar is shaped by the dream, for the most part it seems clear that the latter is the answer. Hennessey themselves said the Blackbird, “responds to a growing number of collectors and drivers who want a car that feels special at any speed… Blackbird is designed for people who still love to drive.”
The quest for convenience, and the urge to optimize has been enabled by our modern technology. While the wider world begins to question this precept and its effects on our everyday technologies, so too are us gearheads questioning its effects on our cars.
Simplicity Behind A Paywall
Today, everything is frictionless. Where you used to send a letter and waited patiently for a reply, you now send a text and expect a response in minutes. Where you used to wait in line and chat with the cashier, you now self-checkout and tap your phone to pay. Where you used to zip down a mountain road at 55 mph in fifth with a smile on your lips, your bottom feeling each pebble in the pavement, you now hit 80 on the same road before third, with rear-wheel steering and active suspension calculating the perfect exit angle as you squint in concentration and drip sweat from your hairline.
A few years ago, the analog hypercar might’ve been seen as hopelessly niche: one made for the dandy collector who practices the Spanish concept of sobremesa, or staying at the table after a meal, often for hours, solely for the company of friends. With the Blackbird, though, we see that even the Americans realize that optimization has become a headache. The fatigue of ease is global, and the Blackbird, its contemporaries, and sobremesa, are the stuff of nightmares to streamlined workflows, Amazon grocery deliveries, and zoom meetings.
Hennessey
Today, that friction we tried so hard to eliminate has become the new luxury and, as it is with all luxury items, it’s only accessible to the world’s wealthiest. The 2.5 million dollar Blackbird is an experience that will sell 71 examples at most.