Very few boutique automakers achieve their goal of playing in the big leagues, but it looks like Sweden’s Koenigsegg has pulled it off. After unveiling two new cars at the Geneva Motor Show last March, the automaker has announced plans to double its annual production by building a second assembly line.
Don’t get the wrong idea, as Koenigsegg isn’t going to build thousands — or even hundreds — of cars any time soon. Right now, the company assembles between 10 and 15 cars a year, and the second production line that will be operational next year will allow it to churn out at least 25. The company’s cars are all hand-built from start to finish. And in following that process, it takes about 1,000 hours of work to paint a car and anywhere between two to three months to build an engine from scratch.
The extra production capacity is required as Koenigsegg steadily expands into new markets. About a year ago, the company returned to the United States after a brief absence and opened a dealership in New York City. It currently sells the Agera RS, a track-focused coupe powered by a twin-turbocharged 5.0-liter V8 engine that makes 1,160 horsepower, and the more extreme Regera, a megacar that uses a gasoline-electric hybrid drivetrain rated at over 1,500 horsepower and 1,475 lb-ft. of torque.
Both cars carry a base price of well over a million dollars, but even so, sales are starting to pick up, especially now that the Bugatti Veyron is out of production.
What’s next?
A third assembly line might be needed before the decade comes to a close. Company founder Christian von Koenigsegg recently revealed that a four-door model could be introduced in the next five years, and maybe even sooner. If built, Koenigsegg’s first-ever sedan would feature a lightweight body made out of carbon fiber, a highly-aerodynamic design and Bugatti-beating performance.
