Bugatti Veyron - one of the greatest achievements in automotive history

There are very few car companies left on the planet that will automatically get the attention of everyone in the room. Lamborghini still holds a mythic charm for some, as does Maserati and even Rolls Royce or Bentley. But if you want to talk exotic sports cars that will make you the envy of every other car on the road, there is only Bugatti. While the company name has come and gone and is now under the umbrella of Volkswagen, the Bugatti mystique has never lagged. Now, with the introduction of the Veyron, Bugatti has silenced any critics by producing one of the most incredible automobiles in history.

To say that the Veyron is unique is an understatement. At the time of this article, the Veyron is the most expensive, most powerful and fastest street legal road production car in the world. The Veyron has been tested at over 253 miles per hour, or 407 km/h. The Veyron is named after the famed Grand Prix driver of the same name who won the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1939 in a Bugatti.

The Veyron boats 16 cylinders, only the second car after the Cizeta-Moroder V16 T to have 16 cylinders. The engine has four banks of four cylinders each and is the equivalent of twin narrow-angle V8’s, side by side. This monster engine is fueled by four turbochargers and it displaces eight liters.

One of the most amazing statistics about the Veyron is the fact that it has ten separate radiators: three to cool the engine, two for the air conditioning, four different ones for the oil system and one for the intercoolers.

If you’re wondering how much horsepower that huge engine can put out, the answer is: a lot. Testing of the Veyron showed its hp output at 1020 or so but the car is marketed as putting out 1001. Even at that rate, the Veyron is still the most powerful street legal car in the world.



If your palms aren’t sweating yet, some of the initial test numbers should do the trick. Not only can the Veyron reach over 250 mph, but it can go from zero to sixty in only 2.5 seconds. One of the interesting features of the Veyron is that once it reaches a speed of 137 miles per hour, hydraulics in the car automatically lower it to the ground so that you don’t end up taking off.

And how much can you expect to pay for this once in a lifetime vehicle? The price at the unveiling was 1.4 million dollars, or 737,000 British Pounds.

So, is it worth it? It really depends on your financial situation. If you can drop 1.4 million on a car and not notice a dent in your bank account, then sure, why not? Reviewers have called the Veyron one of the greatest achievements in automotive history, and if you can afford to have a piece of that, than by all means, go for it. But you better bring extra money for gas, the Veyron gets only 8 mpg city and 15 mpg highway.