2008 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Base Coupe 2-door 8.0l on 2040-cars

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Bugatti has already designed and shown an SUV, awaits green light

Bugatti appears to be backing itself right into the quilted leather seats of a crossover the brand swore would never happen. In January, CEO Stephan Winkelmann announced to the world, "There will be no SUV from Bugatti." By April, reports said Bugatti was working on a "crossover-influenced sports car," which is gobbledygook meant to avoid calling an SUV an SUV. Winkelmann also admitted then that as far as what kind of vehicle to build as a second Bugatti, "It's not me to decide." At the beginning of this month, Automobile magazine's intel claimed Bugatti was considering an all-electric SUV using a Rimac platform, limited to around 600 units per year and selling for between $850,000 and $1 million. Closing the circle, when Automobile's man recently sat down with Winkelmann, the CEO said this in response to a question about a "three-door, ultra-premium crossover SUV:" "The design is done. Some potential customers have seen it, and they liked it." The Italo-German head honcho then seemed to back Automobile's previous reportage, saying that a potential crossover "would almost certainly be battery-powered," and that he envisioned sales volumes between 600 and 800 per year. When "one or two influential people" from the Volkswagen Group mother ship stopped by to check out the design, they "were complimentary about it." Since overlords haven't signed off on any such vehicle, "there is no budget and no decision." But this is like when a dog owner puts on his jacket, shorts, and gym shoes, grabs the leash, then tortures the dog with the pretense that they aren't going for a walk. So don't be surprised if [when] Bugatti reveals a crossover. One truly surprising quote from the boss was when he said, "So far, nobody is doing a high-performance, high-end luxury CUV. Because of the battery situation, it’s too early for an electric hypercar." To the former claim, that's a wheelbarrow full of dirt thrown on the Bentley Bentayga Speed, as well as the Lamborghini Urus that Winkelmann shepherded to production. As for the latter, Rimac and Pininfarina would likely, respectfully, disagree.  Another potential walk-back is an open-topped version of the Chiron. When Motor Trend asked Winkelmann last December if the carmaker planned a Chiron Grand Sport, the exec replied, "We decided in the Chiron project not to do an open-top version." And now?

Bugatti Bolide weighs less than a Subaru BRZ and has over nine times the power

Since rising from its ashes for the second time in 1998, Bugatti has specialized in creating cars that are as fast and powerful as they are luxurious. And yet, competition — where luxury is superfluous — is a big part of its DNA. It renewed ties with its racing heritage by building a track-only two-seater around its mighty 16-cylinder engine. Bugatti proudly calls the Bolide — which means "a very fast car" in French — the fastest and lightest concept it has ever built. Concept is the key term here; the Bolide is a one-off, and it has not been approved for production yet. It's proof of concept that illustrates what a modern-day successor to the victorious Type 35 could look like. Stephan Winkelmann, the head of Bugatti, said driving the Bolide is "like riding a cannonball." Do you remember the 0.67 figure the company mysterious floated? That's the car's power-to-weight ratio, which was achieved using the kilogram-per-Pferdestrke formula used in Europe. It tips the scale at 2,734 pounds dry, and it has 1,824 horsepower. Put another way, it weighs slightly less than a Subaru BRZ, but it has over nine times the power. Unlocking the full cavalry requires feeding the quad-turbocharged, 8.0-liter W16 engine 110-octane race fuel. Its output checks in at 1,600 horsepower (a figure that's on par with the limited-edition Centodieci's) when it burns 98-octane gasoline, which is dispensed at virtually every pump across Europe. Computer simulations suggest that the Bolide's top speed lies somewhere north of 310 mph, and that it can lap the Nurburgring track in 5:23.1. Although the W16 is closely related to the unit that powers the Chiron, it received a number of modifications that reflect the fact that the Bolide was not designed for street use. It develops 1,364 pound-feet of torque thanks in part to four newly-developed turbochargers. Its intake and exhaust systems are derestricted to let more air travel through, and the oil system has been revised to cope with the high centrifugal forces experienced on the track. Created in eight months, the Bolide benefits from an array of weight-saving techniques, including some not found in production cars. All of the screws and fasteners used to build it are made with titanium, for example. The auxiliary drive shafts are manufactured using a blend of carbon fiber and 3D-printed titanium. Aerodynamic innovations are part of the package, too.

Guinness reconfirms Bugatti Veyron's world record top speed

After taking last week to review the record category for World's Fastest Production Car, Guinness World Records has reconfirmed that the holder of this hotly contested superlative remains the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport.
The Veyron Super Sport set the official record back in 2010 with a Guinness-verified speed of 267.8 miles per hour, but other interested parties have recently contested that record's validity because the Veyron used that day had its speed limiter removed. With the speed limiter in place, the Veyron Super Sport tops out at 258 mph.
Guinness rules state that a record-setting production car must be unchanged from what is available to customers. While some, particularly Hennessey Performance, have claimed that removing the Veyron's speed limiter violated that rule, Guinness has settled the matter by stating that "a change to the speed limiter does not alter the fundamental design of the car or its engine."