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Hennessey builds a Chevy SS with the power of a Bugatti Veyron

Hennessey HPE1000 Chevrolet SS
Image used with permission by copyright holder

You may have seen a Hennessey-tuned Chevrolet SS reach 163 mph on a Texas toll road. That car had 600 horsepower.

Now, Hennessey is offering a performance package for this four-door muscle car with 1,000 hp. What kind of speeds will that thing be able to do on state highways?

The Hennessey HPE1000 Chevy SS really is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. While it looks largely similar to the stock SS, the factory 6.2-liter LS3 V8 is replaced with a 7.0-liter, twin-turbocharged LSX motor.

Hennessey’s own 270-mph Venom GT produces 1,244 hp with a similar twin-turbocharged 7.0-liter V8, so this Chevy sedan is only about a Ford Fusion 2.0-liter EcoBoost away from matching its output.

This steroidal V8 is reinforced with many forged internal parts to handle Bugatti Veyron-esuqe levels of power, and features an air-to-air intercooler and upgraded fuel system to keep the vital fluids flowing.

Buyers can also get the HPE1000 with a six-speed manual transmission, which isn’t offered from the factory but may be in the near future.

The stock SS’ six-speed automatic can be retained, but Hennessey subjects it to a complete rebuild to handle the extra power from the bigger engine.

While the transmission may be able to handle 1,000 hp, not every driver can, so Hennessey offers milder HPE550, HPE600 (the version that made that impressive toll-road run), HPE650, and HPE800 versions.

And if you don’t want a four-door American supercar, you can just have the 1000-hp Camaro from Hennessey, too.

Pick your poison.

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Stephen Edelstein
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
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