Dr. Seuss' fictional character has done it again as The Grinch has stolen the Christmas tree once more. The green creature appears to be swapping cars year after year and keeps going faster and faster, managing to beat last year's 183-mph run in an Audi RS6 Avant. His getaway car was a Shelby Mustang GT500 appropriately painted in Eruption Green. The tuned car was fitted with the Hennessey Venom 1000 package for the annual Christmas Tree Run.
After stealing the tree from a van at the Continental Tires Proving Grounds in Texas, The Grinch slaps it onto the car's roof and makes a run for it. However, Spencer Geswein acts fast and eventually gets the car back. He hops behind the wheel of the tuner's second-most powerful build based on the Mustang Shelby GT500.
Gallery: Hennessey Venom 1000 Mustang Shelby GT500 Christmas Tree
The aftermarket specialist also has a Venom 1200 package with (yes, you've guessed it) 1,200 horsepower. The range-topping kit tailored to the Mustang Shelby GT500 also bumps torque from 850 lb-ft (1,156 Nm) to a mountain-moving 902 lb-ft (1,227 Nm) from a supercharged 5.2-liter V8 engine.
The amped-up 'Stang used its colossal 1,000 horsepower to beat last year's super wagon by hitting 192 mph (nearly 310 km/h). In recent years, we've seen Hennessey's Dodge Challenger Hellcat Widebody do 174 mph (280 km/h), surpassed by a Porsche 911 Turbo S (175 mph or 282 km/h) and a Jeep Trackhawk (181 mph or 291 km/h).
With the Venom F5, Hennessey should be able to smash the 200-mph barrier next year, provided the tuner will decide to use its hypercar for the 2023 Christmas Tree Run.
