Hennessey Velociraptor 600 leaps dunes in the California desert as part of Hennessey’s ‘Fire & Ice’ testing program

Hennessey, the Texas-based hypercar manufacturer and high-performance vehicle creator, pushes its vehicles to the limit with unique ‘Fire & Ice’ durability testing. The multi-venue program challenges its re-engineered vehicles – including the Hennessey VelociRaptor 600 – to extreme cold and hot temperatures while driving under brutal conditions.

In its most recent challenge, Hennessey pitted its powerful VelociRaptor 600 truck against shifting dunes and temperatures exceeding 100°F (~40°C) in an arid Southern California desert. Utilizing its enhanced 672 lb-ft of torque, the truck tackled extreme inclines to climb 300 ft high dunes, plus underwent punishing launches and high-speed driving. The Hennessey engineering team also pushed the VelociRaptor’s powertrain and suspension to its limit, sprinting up steep dunes and executing multiple high-speed jumps.

The desert test occurred at the Glamis Sand Dunes, California’s largest mass of windblown sand. The dune system extends more than 40 miles across the state’s southeast in a band averaging five miles wide. The hot weather program followed a set of cold-weather tests that the Hennessey VelociRaptor 600 and Mammoth 1000 TRX underwent in the freezing mountains of Colorado. There, with temperatures dipping below 10°F (-12°C), the trucks explored their limits of grip while evaluating the performance of the upgraded engines, intake systems, and exhausts.

Testing for all Hennessey models begins at the company’s headquarters in Sealy, Texas. Under the guidance of Hennessey Director of R&D Jason Haynes, each model line is subjected to hundreds of hours of research and development. This helps guarantee that Hennessey upgrades enhance every aspect of the vehicle while retaining complete usability and manufacturer driving modes.

After lab-based evaluation, development moves to Hennessey’s various on-site dyno bays for live assessment. The final phase sees development models pound the Pennzoil Proving Ground at Hennessey’s headquarters to evaluate the modifications in the real world. Even after each model line is signed-off, every customer vehicle undergoes its series of quality assurance tests, including a detailed test drive by Hennessey’s engineers.

Customers are also invited to the Texas HQ to see the final testing phase, with many experiencing their new vehicle for the first time on the Pennzoil Proving Ground.