When Pierre Veyron, together with team principal and co-driver Jean-Pierre Wimille, won the 1939 24 Heures du Mans, no one realized then just what far-reaching implications it had.
59 years later, Volkswagen, under Chairman Ferdinand Piech, acquired the Bugatti brand and set in motion one of the most audacious automotive project ever. Piech, who incidentally was the grandson of Ferdinand Porsche – the late patriarch of the Porsche clan – authorized the development of a prototype vehicle that will be the fastest road production car ever; it will be named the Bugatti Veyron.
After a turbulent gestation period that was riddled with cost overruns, production delays and mechanical setbacks, the first Veyron came off the production line in 2006. Piech decided then they would produce only 300 of these machines and another 150 of the Grand Sports variant.
So you’re probably wondering how many of the breathtakingly gorgeous Veyrons have been sold since then? As of last year, they have cleared an incredible 250 units, with each retailing between $1.3 to $2.1 million dollars.
Is any car worth that much? Let’s take a closer look at the latest incarnation of this legendary car.
The 8.0-liter quad-turbo W16 engine generates over 1000 horsepower and 922 lb/ft torque. To put that into perspective, it’s the equivalent of almost nine Toyota Prius, or about five Chevy Impala. Are you starting to get the picture?
Next, this four-wheel drive, 7-speed transmission marvel has a top speed of 253 mph and can go from 0-60mph in 2.5 seconds flat. It consumes a gallon of fuel every 3 to 11 miles, depending how hard you work the engine and with the 26-gallon tank, you should expect an empty tank every hour or so. That rules out a nice cross-country drive, unless of course you’re in Germany, where the autobahn has rest stops every 34 miles. The 4.5-meter, sturdy aluminum and carbon fiber body are mainly to blame for this phenomenal fuel-guzzling capacity; it weighs 4300 pounds, almost 50% more than a Boxster!
The verdict: Driving this ten radiator beast is perfection personified, combining unsurpassed strength and grace, where the lightest touch of the accelerator unleashes pure animalistic spirit out of its aluminum flesh; it’s crack on wheels, it’s sex with a stranger on a dark stormy night with Bernstein’s Beethoven Ninth Symphony playing at the back– or so I’ve heard.
