Little son of Ferdinand Porsche, Ferdinand Piech has left his borrowed the entire second half of the twentieth century. Before his retirement, this exceptional engineer decided to give the story a vehicle out of the ordinary: the Bugatti Veyron 16.4.
Ferdinand Piech was early in his career developed the engine of the Porsche 911, no less! He then designed the Porsche 917 that won it all in competition. Then he stepped into the Audi Group where he developed the Quattro transmission that led to the victory rally in the mark. After being president of Audi, he became chairman of Volkswagen AG he has risen to the forefront. He also knew some bargain purchases of prestige brands such as Bentley, Lamborghini and Bugatti.
In retiring, the man would probably leave some sort of testament to the group: to develop the ultimate sports car, containing all the innovations of the group. The turbocharger was launched while Piech Porsche, the dual-clutch DSG box and of course the drive. All this in a program specification simple: an easy car to drive, but developing over 1000 horsepower and, passing the 400 km / h. Having toured all the rooms of the world since 2000, this vehicle was finally put into production.
To succeed in creating an engine of more than 1,000 horses at a time when the most powerful not exceed that of the 600 little horses, he was hit hard. Basically, everything has been doubled compared to what we can find on other exceptional cars. The engine will be equipped with 16 cylinders, no less. This type of engine has already existed in the past, but the cars have to count on the fingers of one hand. To ease congestion, engineers have used a technique they have made themselves experts: the cylinders are arranged in two banks of 8 cylinders in staggered rows. This is the technique used on the previous Passat W8, and W12 on the group, but here it is therefore composed of 4 rows of 4 cylinders. They are covered by two heads with 4 valves per cylinder, 64 valves. So, we decided to go … 4 turbochargers too small for more than 2 large meeting. With all this and a displacement of 8 liters, we better understand how power is obtained from 1001 horses (it is rumored that in the Veyron develops a little more practice) and above 127.6 mkg torque constant from 2200 to 5500 rpm. Specificity of the Veyron: a dial on the dashboard shows the power generated by the engine. He has no other purpose than to flatter the ego of the driver …
The first problem that arose in the Renaissance Bugatti was the transmission. How the hell do pass such a couple? No other operator offering such figures, it was necessary to develop a specific gearbox. Of course it will be double-clutch DSG. The new box since the coup to touch, nothing shall preclude the presence of a seventh report, required to obtain a high speed veeeeeery. Created by the English specialist Ricardo, it is operated lever or via paddles behind the steering wheel and has an automatic mode. A true automatic transmission torque converter would have been much easier to develop given the available torque (see the example of the Mercedes SLR) but Bugatti has made an effort to provide a sports car and therefore manual transmission.
A sports car must provide a power to weight ratio very low, and the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 is no exception: few cars indeed offer less than 2 kg / hp. But this score is the result of the high power of the car and not a lightweight. For say it bluntly, a weight in running order by about 2 tons is not worthy of a sports and power serves only to hide this mass ultimately logical as big a motor, a transmission 4-wheel drive and a very complete equipment, it eventually encrypt … Immediate result, so that the car can go hard cornering, it took him installing oversized tires. These are some of the tires that have dragged the development of the car. Indeed, the constraints are enormous tires because of the weight, power and speed of the Veyron.Note that the rear spoiler moving constantly adjusted to balance smoothness and support, especially under braking. For some care was given to the brake and the massive carbon discs are up to.
No, the trick of the Veyron is to break records. Preferably in a straight line … And over there, with such power there is no comparison: according to Auto Motor und Sport, Bugatti reaches 100 km / h in just 2.5 “, the 200 km / h in some 7.4 “and above the 300 km / h in just 18.2″ … At this level, it is clear that there is no competition. To successfully pass the milestone of 375 km / h, we must implement a configuration special. We must turn a special key located to the left of the driver. The suspension led reduces a little more ground clearance (less than 70 mm) and some close air intakes to improve the aerodynamics: the password Cx then from 0.42 to 0355. If you find the place one day, then you can reach a speed of 402 km / h.
At this rate, the reserve of 100 liters of fuel will not take more than a quarter of an hour. In sporty driving, it is necessary that you count consume a little less important: more than 60 L/100. But current leadership is also possible to descend to 25 L/100, barely more than a Subaru Impreza WRX STi when you come out the big attack … Certainly, consumption will be absolutely no concern for the owner who has already signed a check than the one million euro to acquire the bug. Of course, CO2 emissions are at: with 574 g / km, the most polluting 4×4s are far behind. When will environmentalists to ban demonstrations Veyron 16.4 in center city? Joking aside, this self rejects CO2 but not bad considering the number of Bugatti Veyron 16.4 in circulation, it obviously has no influence on the pollution of the country.
Which disturb the other hand a bit more potential owner of this vehicle records, it’s reliability. Indeed it does not seem optimal. Mistreatment or failure of successive drivers to focus, still is it that several journalists have encountered trouble during the various tests. This does not surprise us would from a car produced by a sorcerer a little crazy, but it is not, however, the practice of the Volkswagen Group. But again, we remember that the gestation of the car was quite long and it has not always been easy, especially when designing the engine cooling … Maybe not everything is settled.
Rolling noise produced by tires are not negligible and partially hide the noise of the engine. Nevertheless, the Veyron is easy to drive because of the softness of the box and torque everywhere. Moreover, visibility is not as bad as in some competing models. The equipment includes automatic climate control, GPS and a screen which is integrated in the rearview mirror …. The cabin is dressed for his part made from aluminum cap, leather and hides.
Be aware that the tires have a shelf life of about 5000 km, and the front and rear tires cost respectively 1400 and 1800 euro coin. The outrageousness of the Bugatti Veyron 16.4, especially in terms of price, do not stop to sell nearly 100 orders have registered, about 2 years of production. The purpose of the brand is to produce this model for about 6 years, the number of copies are now limited to 300.
The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 has not the finesse that might have a McLaren F1 and the competition made us think of the biggest sausage. Nevertheless, it keeps the promises that his spiritual father had held in his presentation, while providing an improbable driveability. The bar has been set up high!
With over 1000 horsepower, this incredible sports car you will reach 407km / h. But that’s not all, here are some statistics on the Bugatti Veyron to take your breath away: it reaches 100 km / h in just 2.5 seconds, 200 km / h in 7.4 seconds and 300 km / h in just 18.2 seconds.
