Veyron Bugatti Concept Sport Car
The Veyron was designed by Hartmut Warkuss of
Volkswagen rather than
Giorgetto Giugiaro of ItalDesign who had handled the three prior Bugatti concepts.Development continued throughout 2001 and the EB 16/4 Veyron was promoted to "advanced concept" status. In late 2001 Bugatti announced that the car, officially called the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 , would go into production in 2003. The car experienced significant problems, however. High-speed stability was difficult, with one prototype destroyed in a crash and another spun out during a press demonstration at the Monterey Historics event in Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca . Production of the Veyron was delayed indefinitely.
After the release of the car, it has become known that while each Veyron is being sold for £840,000, the production costs of the car are approximately £5 million per vehicle. As Bugatti, and therefore
Volkswagen, are making such a huge loss, it has been likened by influential journalist
Jeremy Clarkson to Concorde ; both are largely impractical experiments in technology and ground-breaking performance created just to prove that it could be done. A car the like of the Bugatti Veyron may not be seen in production again for some time to come, if at all.
The Veyron features a W16 engine —16 cylinders in 4 banks of 4 cylinders, or the equivalent of two narrow-angle V8 engines mated in a vee configuration. Each cylinder has 4 valves , for a total of 64, but the narrow V8 configuration allows two camshafts to drive two banks of cylinders so only 4 camshafts are needed. The engine is fed by four turbochargers , and it displaces 8.0 L (7,993 cm³/488 in³) with a square 86 by 86 mm bore and stroke.
The Veyron's 16-cylinder engine is based on the innovative "W" design introduced in the 2003
Volkswagen Passat. The Veyron's version features two 90-degree V8s offset by 15 degrees. The offset allows each cylinder to be placed close to its neighbor, which reduces the total size of the massive 8.0-liter engine. A Formula 1?style dry-sump lubrication system keeps the engine moving smoothly. It's easier to spin many small turbochargers than one or two large ones, so Bugatti employs four turbos to reduce boost lag. The strategy works: The engine creates 922 lb.-ft. of torque at only 2,200 rpm.
Putting this power to the ground is a
dual-clutch DSG computer-controlled manual transmission with 7 gear ratios via shifter paddles behind the steering wheel. Or it can be driven by full automatic transmission. The Veyron also features full-time all wheel drive , necessary given the output of the engine. It uses special
Michelin PAX System run-flat tires, which had to be designed specifically for the Veyron, and which are capable of running at 402 km/h (253 mph).
The car's wheelbase is 2700 mm (106.3 in). Overall length is 4466 mm (175.8 in). It measures 1998 mm (78.7 in) wide and 1206 mm (47.5 in) tall. Curb weight is expected to reach 4300 lb (1950 kg) with a power to weight ratio of 513.3 hp per ton (metric) or 4.36 lb/hp (SAE).The Bugatti Veyron has a total of 10 radiators .
Although the 1Malaysia F1 Team would initially be based near Lotus’ hometown of Norfolk, there are plans to relocate to the Sepang International Circuit sometime in the future. Apparently the SIC has allocated between 8,000 to 12,000 hectres (er, this must be a misquote by MSM journos) of land for the F1 team’s headquarters. The site will be at the parking area before the tunnel to enter the podium building.
