• 1,064 bhp 2026 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 sets new festive benchmark with fastest ever road-legal Christmas tree run
• Hennessey’s 5½-foot Christmas tree with 200+ lights brings holiday-season record home to Texas with triple-digit speed
• Seventh ‘Hennessey Christmas Tree Run’ demonstrates the fun side of Hennessey’s relentless pursuit for performance
  

A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on this link.

Images: Fully lit – Hennessey Christmas tree run with Corvette ZR1
Video: Hennessey’s 196 mph Christmas Tree starring the Corvette ZR1

SEALY, Texas, Dec. 22, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hennessey, the Texas-based hypercar manufacturer and high-performance vehicle creator, has set a new festive record taking a 5½-foot (1.7 meter) Christmas tree to 196 mph on the roof of the new 2026 1,064 bhp Chevrolet C8 Corvette ZR1. Set on the runway at Chase Field, Beeville, Texas the Hennessey achievement is believed to be the fastest ever speed achieved by road-legal car carrying a Christmas tree.

The record speed was set with the ZR1-mounted tree adorned with more than 200 festive lights and holiday ribbon. This is the seventh Hennessey Christmas Tree Run and the third piloted by professional driver Spencer Geswein. This season’s speed record surpassed the company’s own 192 mph record set in 2022 with a Hennessey Venom 1000 Ford Mustang.

Alex Roys, company President: “Hennessey’s Christmas Tree Run has evolved from a crazy little holiday stunt into one of the most fun traditions. Every year we strap a tree to something a little wilder and a little faster. It’s the kind of event that reminds you why this whole thing started… because cars should be loud, fun, and just a little bit unhinged. Running the 2026 Corvette ZR1 was a perfect finale to another amazing year for the Hennessey team.”

This year’s Christmas Tree Run starred the new 2026 Corvette ZR1, which is widely regarded as one of the most compelling performance vehicles on the market today. Chevrolet’s flagship model is powered by a twin-turbocharged 5.5-liter flat-plane crank V8 engine that produces 1,064 hp and 828 lb-ft of torque.

Specialist driver Spencer Geswein, no stranger to high-speed antics (having previously piloted Hennessey’s Venom 1000 Mustang GT500 to 192 mph in 2022 and the 1,817 bhp Venom F5 to over 270 MPH in 2022 testing), once again delivered a flawless run, topping out just shy of 200 mph. Incidentally, the Hennessey team also tested the fully optioned C8 ZR1 ZTK track pack car without the tree and managed 206 mph before running out of room on the runway.

The ‘Christmas Tree Run’ has often been a hallmark of Hennessey’s year-end celebrations, with each pairing of car and tree raising the bar for speed and spectacle. Starting in 2017 with a Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody, Hennessey set the tree-topped speed at 174 mph, each run has pushed to improve on past records with this season’s 194 mph ZR1 time dethroning the 192 mph Venom 1000 Mustang from 2022.

Hennessey Christmas Tree Speed Runs

Hennessey vehicles are dyno-tested, road-tested, and backed by a 3-year / 36,000-mile limited warranty. Vehicles are available directly from Hennessey or through its authorized dealer network. Customers can learn more, explore inventory, or inquire about factory builds at HennesseyPerformance.com or by calling +1 979 885 1300.

For associated images, click the links below or email Jon.Visscher[@]vcomm.co.uk

Images: Fully lit – Hennessey Christmas tree run with Corvette ZR1: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/ovtegzgj1ncxk10h9s7tw/AGIbGrMn89tdDb_npmG74j4?rlkey=pamoe7p2nwornggjjxlhvr5wu&st=bxz0g264&dl=0

Video: Hennessey’s 196 mph Christmas Tree starring the Corvette ZR1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR_5oPHRj7A

About Hennessey Performance
Based in Sealy, Texas, Hennessey comprises Hennessey Special Vehicles (HSV), Hennessey Performance (HPE), and Tuner School. The company has re-engineered more than 15,000 vehicles for performance enthusiasts worldwide to deliver unparalleled driving thrills. Alongside modifying a diverse range of sports and muscle cars since 1991, the company also applies its high-performance expertise to trucks and SUVs.

Every Hennessey product is dyno-proven, fully track-tested, street-legal, and warrantied. Customers can choose from road-ready performance-enhanced vehicles by Hennessey from various brands, including Cadillac, Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Jeep, and Ram, all benefitting from a host of high-performance upgrades.

With its own test track, engineering curriculum for aspiring tuners, 120 team members, and capacity to simultaneously work on more than 50 vehicles, Hennessey Performance is one of the world's leading specialist vehicle engineering companies. In 2025, Hennessey announced plans to double the size of its production facility with demand for its high-performance vehicles forecast to grow 100% by 2027. HennesseyPerformance.com

About Hennessey Special Vehicles
Motivated by the challenge, Texas-based Hennessey Special Vehicles creates extreme, authentic, inspirational hypercars. With a customer-first approach, exceptional craftsmanship, and a passion for performance, they created the Venom F5. Unveiled in 2025, the 2,031 horsepower F5 Evolution is an utterly extreme hypercar that exhibits the pinnacle of power and performance, delivering a visceral, awe-inspiring driving experience to an exclusive family of owners.

Designed, developed, and built in the US, the company’s 100% bespoke, twin-turbocharged, 6.6-liter ‘Fury’ V8 Venom F5 is America’s Hypercar. Engineered to exceed 300 mph, the line-up includes Coupe and Roadster body styles – each available in track-focused ‘Revolution’ form and limited-run Special Series – a future manual version also set to join the line up. To ensure exclusivity, no more than 99 Venom F5 models will be built. HennesseySpecialVehicles.com

Social media
Instagram: HennesseySpecialVehicles / HennesseyPerformance | YouTube: HennesseyPerformanceF5 | Facebook: @hennesseype | X: @HennesseyPerf

Media contact
For further information, images, or comments, contact Hennessey’s PR team at Vcomm:
Jon Visscher
Jon.Visscher[@]vcomm.co.uk / Vcomm.co.uk

Other Hennessey images and videos available at HennesseyMedia.com