Bugatti Veyron: the truth is out there. Part 2

Newswheel staff :: 17 October 2005 :: Filed under Mid / rear engine sportscar, Bugatti, Bugatti Veyron, Europe & UK, US

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The torrent continues

We have a theory about the Bugatti Veyron coverage now appearing in the world’s motoring and mainstream media: the level of fluff and fawning will be inversely proportional to the article’s proximity to launch. Gaining early access to a car like the big Bug inevitably means pulling your punches. So, with the first puff pieces from the usual specialist print mag suspects out of the way, are we getting any closer to the truth?

Truth? You can’t handle the truth!
The Sunday Times and Daily Telegraph had stories this weekend provided by a pair of British motoring journalism grandees, Andrew English and Ray Hutton respectively. And it’s more what the duo don’t say than what they do that gives the game away. After all, as well as being the fastest road car in history, on paper the Veyron is one of the most breathtaking technical achievements ever. So, here’s the rub: if they’re not raving about it like a pair of extras from Reefer Madness, then you have to wonder why.

Of the two, it’s English who plays the cooler hand. Sure, he’s very impressed by the 7-speed twin-clutch DSG gearbox. It renders this warp-speed wagon “perfectly docile and manageable,” it’s far superior to the Ferrari Enzo’s paddle shifter and more user friendly than tricky traditional manual box fitted to the Porsche Carrera GT. He’s happy enough with the “perfectly weighted” and “needle” accurate steering, too, and makes no quibble with the car’s “outlandish” cornering limits. And of course, he confirms the Veyron is viciously, incomprehensibly quick. It punches just as hard at 210mph as at 70. Crikey.

Where’s the love?
However, he also has doubts. For a supposedly sporting car, we reckon the Veyron’s two ton kerb weight is tantamount to blasphemy, so we’re not surprised English found it intimidating near the limit (when an army of stability control systems seize control) and less satisfying to drive than the Enzo. And since the Veyron has no more luggage space or general practicality than that car, Bugatti’s pitch that it’s more properly a road car than its main competition, is moot. So, English pays his dues with some respectfully positive noises. But it’s pretty obvious: there’s not much love.

As for Ray Hutton, he serves up a more brochure-friendly piece, echoing the ease-of-driving theme, adding that the throttle and brake pedals are mercifully progressive and agreeing that the DSG box is brilliant. But oddly, he doesn’t deliver a single digit of data regarding how the car handles.

Fascinating factoids
Of course, there’s a predictable flurry of weird and wonderful facts and inevitable comparisons with F1 cars and fighter jets. But probably the most intriguing is the revelation that Bugatti turned to Swiss racing outfit Sauber for help hitting the mythical 400kph (250-ish mph) top speed target. Apparently, Sauber took the tried and tested route of slamming the suspension, plugging all the air holes and trimming out the aero package. Of course, given the widely reported cooling issues suffered during development, that doesn’t sound awfully reassuring. So how did Bugatti sove the problem?

Well, it turns out it didn’t need to. As the firm’s chief technical guru Wolfgang Schreiber says, “there isn’t the time, space or fuel” when Vmaxing the car with the electronically adjustable aero and chassis systems in full reheat mode for it to cook itself. At the 253mph top speed (recently confirmed by US mag Car and Driver), the 22 gallon tank is drained in just 12 minutes. In the unlikely event anyone ever manages it, they’ll have covered 50 miles at less than 5mpg. Nice. Oh, and one more thing - there’s a stripped-out, lightweight variant which could follow once the full-fat model’s 300 unit production run is completed.

Don’t get too close
There we have it, then. The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 packs 987bhp from its 16-cylinder, quad-turbo engine. It’s capable of over 250mph, hits 60 in 2.5 seconds and 125mph in 7.3. It costs well over $1 million. But driving it will not change your life.

Which doesn’t exactly beg the question, when will Newswheel strap itself in? Well, apart from the fact that it would likely take six months of dedicated bottom smooching (and they probably still wouldn’t invite us over), we’re secretly rather worried if we got close enough it might pummel us into submission with its awesome raw speed. That won’t do at all. There’s much more sport to be had kicking sand in its face from a distance.

Linkage:
Bugatti Veyron: the truth is out there. Part 1 (internal)