Bugatti Veyron: The 8th Wonder of the World

Part Aeroplane, Part Automobile. A rare combination of sculpture and speed. A car that defied the laws of physics to cross the 400km/h barrier, and whose top model hit 431km/h when challenged by the American supercar, the SSC Aero. THE WORLD’S FASTEST PRODUCTION CAR- THE BUGATTI VEYRON, a testament to modern day engineering.



Some may question why someone would write about a car that has been around for 6 years, but the fact remains that one can never stop appreciating this car. The following paragraph is just a teaser of the entire movie, but does go to show that recreating something like the Veyron is seemingly impossible given the amount of investment, lack of resources, and the sheer dedication needed to follow up such a dream. Bugatti actually lose money on every Veyron sold, but still continue to sell it as they believe a true car enthusiast deserves a car that will definitely go down as the GREATEST CAR EVER BUILT. There are 56 of them in India, so you are not likely to see one anytime soon. The car is so fast that when Bugatti went to Formula1 to invite them for a race between the Veyron and an F1 car, Formula1 refused the offer claiming that it did not want to face the embarrassment.

Founded in 1909, the company stopped manufacturing automobiles in the late 50’s and turned into an aeroplane parts manufacturer. In 1998, Volkswagen bought the company’s rights and in 2000, decided to build a car with 1001 BHP.

Enough of the historical background. The technical specifications of the car are as follows-

1                 1) 1001 Break-Horsepower (that’s 4 times the power of the base Audi Q7!)

2        2) Top speed of 407km/h on the base version, and a staggering 431 km/h on the Supersport model.(That’s 1/3^rd the speed of Sound!)

3        3) Costs 11 Crores ex-showroom for the base variant. The Supersport however, costs 16 Crores ex-showroom.

Bugatti tech-freaks spent 5 years developing the engine, which is basically a combination of two 4-litre V8’s. The car actually produced 3000BHP, but 2000 BHP turns into heat. That’s the reason why the Veyron has 10 radiators as compared to the 1 radiator your car has.

The braking system is taken from a Jumbo-Jet, and the brakes are so powerful that they stop the car in 10 seconds, from its top speed of 407 km/h. It uses an airbrake, which has enough power to stop your everyday Audi A4. A set of tires on the Veyron costs 10 lac, and the entire engine is made from solid titanium, which is used in manufacturing aeroplanes.  Each car takes 15 days to assemble, and requires 17 technicians working overtime to deliver this masterpiece.

According to its President, Bugatti could not use any system used in a normal car and had to develop all the systems afresh to keep up with the mind blowing speed of this beast. Inspirations from this car range from La Ferrari, to the now available SSC-Tuatora. The car won the Topgear Car of the Decade Award, and truly is a mighty force. Many car enthusiasts like the author of this article dream of even seeing one on the road, and if lucky enough, touch it!