Bugatti Veyron

The Bugatti Veyron was a mid-engine sports car produced in Molsheim, France, by the Volkswagen Group and Bugatti between 2005 and 2015.

Volkswagen acquired the rights to the historic Bugatti marque in 1998 and soon showcased a series of multi-cylinder design concepts. Chief engineer Ferdinand Piëch set bold performance goals for a road car capable of luxury touring alongside record-setting pace. Assembly began in September 2005 at a specialized facility in Alsace after years of thermal and aerodynamic development. The lineup included the initial coupe, the open-top Grand Sport in 2009, the more powerful Super Sport in 2010, and the Grand Sport Vitesse roadster in 2012. Total production ceased in 2015 after 450 examples were built, comprising 300 coupes and 150 open-top editions.

Every edition featured an 8.0-liter W16 engine with four turbochargers and ten individual cooling radiators. In the standard coupe, this powerplant produced 736 kW (987 hp) and directed drive to all four wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. The baseline model accelerated from 0 to 100 km/h in 2.5 seconds and achieved an official top speed of 407 km/h (253 mph) with a special secondary key inserted. To preserve stability, an automated rear wing adjusted angles at high speed and flipped upward to act as an aerodynamic air brake under severe deceleration.

The car set benchmarks for road vehicles and secured major automotive honors. In 2005, the British television series Top Gear named it Best Car Driven All Year, and the program later declared it the Car of the Decade for the 2000s. Official testing on June 26, 2010, at the Ehra-Lessien track in Germany saw the 883 kW (1,184 hp) Super Sport set a production road-car speed record of 431.072 km/h (267.856 mph). Driver Anthony Liu added another milestone on April 6, 2013, steering a Grand Sport Vitesse to 408.84 km/h (254.04 mph) to establish a record run for open-top sports cars.