The inside story on the Bugatti Chiron
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40th anniversary Edition
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From: Grapevine, Texas
The inside story on the Bugatti Chiron
Road and Track's story behind the Bugatti Chiron
Chiron: The Inside Story of Bugatti's 1500 HP, 261 MPH Supercar
Chiron: The Inside Story of Bugatti's 1500 HP, 261 MPH Supercar
Love this stuff.
As preposterous as it sounds, I really think the Veyron is one of the most underrated supercars. Everyone's all about the top speed, but that's not what's really impressive about it. What's impressive is the engineering it took to make a car that goes that fast AND lets any old D-bag hop in and drive it in any conditions. It's a 1000-1200 hp car that can blow the doors off a McLaren F1, but drives like an A4 in fast-forward. And basically every aspect of the car -- engine, transmission, aero, tires, etc. -- was thought impossible before Bugatti made it work.
12 years after the Veyron's release, is there a single car that comes close engineering-wise, or in terms of the whole package? Cars have matched or beaten the top speed, and many could crush it in terms of handling or lap times -- but none has combined that level of speed with those levels of luxury and drivability, and none has even approached a production run of 450. The closest I can think of is maybe -- maybe -- the 918 Spyder... which we only got about 5 minutes to ponder before the Chiron smashed it to bits. No one else even stood a chance. No one else even tried.
I have a lot of gripes with Bugatti, and there's a whole lot of other supercars I'd rather have (including the 918 Spyder). At the same time, I really think that if you're not utterly blown away by what they've achieved, you probably just don't fully understand what you're looking at.
As preposterous as it sounds, I really think the Veyron is one of the most underrated supercars. Everyone's all about the top speed, but that's not what's really impressive about it. What's impressive is the engineering it took to make a car that goes that fast AND lets any old D-bag hop in and drive it in any conditions. It's a 1000-1200 hp car that can blow the doors off a McLaren F1, but drives like an A4 in fast-forward. And basically every aspect of the car -- engine, transmission, aero, tires, etc. -- was thought impossible before Bugatti made it work.
12 years after the Veyron's release, is there a single car that comes close engineering-wise, or in terms of the whole package? Cars have matched or beaten the top speed, and many could crush it in terms of handling or lap times -- but none has combined that level of speed with those levels of luxury and drivability, and none has even approached a production run of 450. The closest I can think of is maybe -- maybe -- the 918 Spyder... which we only got about 5 minutes to ponder before the Chiron smashed it to bits. No one else even stood a chance. No one else even tried.
I have a lot of gripes with Bugatti, and there's a whole lot of other supercars I'd rather have (including the 918 Spyder). At the same time, I really think that if you're not utterly blown away by what they've achieved, you probably just don't fully understand what you're looking at.
Last edited by IamFodi; Feb 8, 2017 at 08:55 AM.
