Christian Von Koenigsegg - The Man Behind The World's Fastest Car

For Christian von Koenigsegg, design comes from the heart

- Anne-Frances Hutchinson

What do the penniless inventor of a pedal-activated combined shaving and raspberry picking machine and the creator of the world’s fastest car have in common? Desire.

We should tell you that the penniless inventor is a fictional protagonist from the 1975 stopmotion animation classic, Pinchcliffe Grand Prix. You already know that the creator of the world’s fastest car is Swedish automotive legend Christian von Koenigsegg.

When Christian was 5 years old, his father, Jesko, took him to see the quirky, colorful tale of a grizzled bicycle repairman whose plans for building an outrageous race car are brought to life by a pair of plucky birds and a helpful investor. The little movie ignited young Christian’s imagination, setting him on a course that would bring him to world acclaim.

Years later, the elder von Koenigsegg would help his son launch Koenigsegg AB, where the world’s most exciting, powerful, and beautiful sports cars have been conceived. In a poignant tribute at this year’s Geneva Auto Show, the company debuted a supercar fittingly named the Jesko.

“The car and the man, Jesko, they’re both very determined individuals. They aim at the goal of what they are trying to achieve and then they go for it,” Christian explained. “My father was a gentleman, and a jockey as well.

“He won his first ever race when he was 16 years old, and I think this car is out for scalps in a way, lap times or top speed, and we basically aim to acquire them fairly early on in the life cycle of the car. From that perspective there are some similarities.