Highly tuned Audi RS6 claims top speed record with a Christmas tree on the roof

An Audi RS6 with a Christmas tree strapped to the roof has claimed a bizarre top speed record.

Texas-based tuning firm Hennessey says it has the record for ‘the fastest station wagon with a Christmas tree mounted on the roof’ after it hit 183mph.

The record attempt has become a fun tradition for the firm, which beat the 181mph that was set last year using its 1,000bhp Hennessey Jeep Trackhawk.

The car used in the record run is a Hennessey-tuned Audi RS6 making 800bhp. Owned by the wife of company owner John Hennessey, it also has a modified exhaust system.

Driven by professional driver and instructor Spencer Geswein, the modifications allowed the six-foot Douglas Fir tree to hit this record speed.

John Hennessey, company Founder and CEO: “We wanted to see what my wife’s Audi station wagon would run without the tree and we managed 205 mph. Then, the real holiday fun began when we mounted a real Christmas tree on the roof. To our surprise, her wagon ran a very respectable 183 mph.

“This was a fun way to end our most recent high speed testing session with our Venom F5. After all, who needs reindeer when your wife has an 800bhp sleigh?”

Hennessey says the RS6 run took place as part of some light relief during testing for the firm’s new Venom F5 hypercar. It has been undergoing final high-speed validation to test the tyres, braking and aerodynamic performance at speeds above 250mph ahead of a 300mph attempt early next year.

Hennessey offers high-performance tuning solutions for a variety of vehicles as well as more bespoke models, and says it builds more than 600 each year. This year has been focused on the F5 while also looking ahead to its first electrified model, called Project Deep Space.