The Stradman joins the Ghost Squadron! Exploring the history of Koenigsegg Agera HH.
James Condon, a popular YouTube creator better known as The Stradman, has recently announced his purchase of Koenigsegg Agera HH, a well-known and beloved Agera example in the United States. In celebration of James joining the Ghost Squadron, we want to explore the fascinating history of the Koenigsegg Agera S, and, more specifically, chassis #7099, dubbed Agera HH.
2011 was a defining year in the automotive world. It saw the introduction of the iconic Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4, a car that would become not only beloved among enthusiasts, but impactful enough to join the pop culture canon of the following decade. Pagani introduced the Huayra, their second distinct model after the beloved Zonda. Best of all, Koenigsegg made waves with the unveiling of the Agera R. A year after the unveiling of the ultra-limited production Agera (seven were made), Koenigsegg sought to apply its years of experience experimenting with biofuels to create an even more powerful hypercar. The Agera R was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show to much acclaim, and for good reason. The twin-turbo V8 was optimized to produce 1,140hp on E85 or E100 biofuel, a 180hp increase over its predecessor. With sixteen units produced, the Agera R arguably made more of a cultural impact than the Agera, from its earth-shattering 0-300-0 world record (completed by #7086 in September 2011) to its inclusion in 2014’s Need For Speed movie. That wasn’t enough for Christian von Koenigsegg and his team, however.
Photo by Sandbox Motors
The Koenigsegg Agera S was introduced in 2012 relatively quietly, but we’d argue the innovation deserved more attention. The Agera S was a essentially an Agera R but optimized for markets without E85 biofuel, primarily in Asia. With new engine mapping and improved hardware, the Agera S could produce 1040hp on standard gasoline - no need for E85. Five Agera S were constructed, four of which were originally delivered to Asia: two to Hong Kong, one to Singapore, and one to Malaysia. The remaining Agera S, the car in question, was built to US-spec.
Rather than wearing an “Agera S” badge like its counterparts, chassis 7099 is dubbed “Agera HH”. This is where its story begins. The first owner of the car was Danish programmer and creator of ‘Ruby on Rails’ David Heinemeier Hansson. David, whose initials are behind the name of the car, commissioned it to match his Pagani Zonda HH, acquired a few years prior.
Photo by G.F. Williams
Agera HH is painted in Monterey Blue and has a ‘Clear Exposed Carbon Fibre’ centre section. It has five-spoke AirCore Carbon wheels and yellow brake calipers, something debuted with the Agera S. On their website, Koenigsegg states that “these revolutionary new wheels weighed 40% less than regular alloy wheels – a massive saving in un-sprung weight that provides both acceleration and handling benefits.” There is an Agera HH badge on each side of the car, just in front of each rear wheel. The car has a clear carbon rear wing, and, due to US homologation issues circa 2013, it has CCX-style wing mirrors, rather than the mirrors typically found on the Agera models. The interior is two-tone black and blue leather. Much of the interior is black, but the outsides of the seats, the door panels, and instrument panel surround are all accented with blue. This blue leather is much lighter, and more muted, than the Monterey Blue found on the exterior. The centre console is carbon fibre with an aluminium control panel. Embroidered in the passenger dash is “Agera HH”, identical to the exterior badge.
Built in 2013, Agera HH first landed in the United States in the 2013-14 winter, and was first registered in Illinois in January 2014. Upon its arrival, it became just the second-ever Koenigsegg Agera model in the US, the first being #7092, an Agera R known as “The Artico”. 7092, built for famed collector Ben Chen (“BC”), was in the US in 2012 and displayed at Monterey Car Week but was bought back by Koenigsegg and converted to right-hand drive in 2013. By the time Agera HH arrived in the US, it was the sole Agera on the North American continent. In June 2014, Agera HH was in Andalusia, Spain with its stablemate Zonda HH, the two being featured in a now-iconic photoshoot at Ascari Circuit with British photographer G.F. Williams. After its sunny escape to the Costa del Sol, it returned to the United States. It was displayed at the New York Auto Show in April 2015, an event with more than 1 million attendees. In May 2015, Agera HH partook in the Gumball 3000 and was driven by Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton on the final leg from Las Vegas to Los Angeles.
Lewis Hamilton driving Agera HH. Photo by Julia LaPalme.
The next stretch of Agera HH’s life was relatively less interesting. Though still registered in Illinois, the car was relocated by its owner to Malibu, California. From 2016 to 2022, it covered only 1500 miles, the majority of those being in the first half of that period. The car was listed for sale with O’Gara Coach in Beverly Hills, California in 2019, but was not sold and returned to its owner. From winter 2019-20 until 2022, Agera HH was almost never seen. It was kept in a storage facility in Malibu. We suspect this was due to the pandemic, with the owner living in the south of Spain being separated from his Agera in the US. In March 2022, after more than eight years with the car, the owner finally decided to part ways with it. It was listed for sale at Sandbox Motors in Los Angeles with 4326 miles on the odometer and a reasonable asking price. Unsurprisingly, it was not on the market for long.
Photo by Sandbox Motors
In May 2022, Agera HH was purchased by Houston Crosta, a YouTube creator and owner of Royalty Exotic Cars based in Las Vegas, Nevada. Under Houston’s ownership, Agera HH got driven like never before. The owner took it on trips and drove the car hard. It made an appearance at Monterey Car Week 2022, to much excitement from the Koenigsegg community. It was also given multiple new looks, including wraps in both Millennium Jade (essentially Army Green) and later Satin Black. He also made modifications to the exhaust, including trying both RYFT blue titanium and RYFT gold exhausts.
Aftermarket RYFT Blue Titanium exhaust installed on Agera HH. Photo by Royalty Exotic Cars.
Houston had expressed plans to work with the Koenigsegg factory to rebuild Agera HH into a custom-one off to his bespoke wishes. However, this did not come to fruition. One year after acquiring it, and after many adventures, Houston listed the car for sale. The mileage? 8179 miles, nearly double the reading from a year prior. The car was initially listed privately by the owner and advertised through DuPont Registry in March 2023 and later offered through Koenigsegg Scottsdale (in Arizona) in May 2023.
Fast forward to the fourth quarter of 2023 and Agera HH has now found a new home. The Stradman was looking for a new hypercar to replace his recently-sold Bugatti Veyron 16.4. Among the initial contenders were the McLaren P1, Ferrari LaFerrari, and Bugatti Chiron. But James, to our delight, decided to purchase Agera HH. He unveiled the car publicly on December 23rd, 2023, sporting a stunning pink wrap!
Photo by The Stradman
Speaking with James about his purchase, his excitement is contagious. He told us about some of the adventures he has planned for the car, which we’re sure he will reveal publicly in due time. We cannot wait for all James has in store for the future with Agera HH. We are confident he will be an amazing custodian of this car, one who will love it, drive it, and share it. Welcome to the Ghost Squadron!
Watch his unveiling video below:
