An American Bugatti Veyron owner has proved that the world's fastest supercar does not make an effective speedboat, after driving his hypercar into a saltwater lagoon near Galveston in Texas.

The owner (who apparently wished to remain anonymous - surprise, surprise) was distracted by a low-flying Pelican (we hate it when that happens) as he was heading north on Interstate 45.

As a result, the hapless fellow jerked the wheel, dropped his mobile and the car veered onto the muddy verge before plunging into the lagoon and coming to rest in approximately two feet of salty water.

He escaped with no injuries. Just an empty wallet.

Source: PistonHeads

You've never heard of the Bugatti Veyron, the latest addition to Forza Motorsport 3 lineup of cars? Neither had we; it's not the type of car we're likely to spot around town. If the above video – detailing the process used to convert the Veyron's various "gauges" and "horsepowers" into equally alluring ones and zeroes – is to be believed, the Veyron is "probably the most coveted car in the world right now."

Is it October 27th yet?



Source: Joystiq

Episode 2 of Top Gear's 13th season aired last night in the UK, and the main event was a one-mile drag race between the McLaren F1 and the Bugatti Veyron. Notice that we didn't say a McLaren F1 and a Bugatti Veyron. These two supercars are so super (and rare) that any single example tends to represent the whole run of each, and since your chances of encountering two of either kind in the same place are practically nill, they might as well be the only ones in existence.

The Top Gear crew chose Abu Dhabi as the location for its supercar shootout. With an arid climate that sees practically no rain or freezing-and-thawing cycles, the roads in Abu Dhabi are long, straight and, most importantly, free of pot holes. Richard Hammond chooses to pilot the Bug and The Stig takes the centrally located wheel of the F1. We won't spoil the results except to say that this is the most real and nail-biting competition that we've seen on Top Gear in a long time. Video in the jump!



Source: AutoBlog

A Beverly Hills dealership has not one, but two Bugatti Veyrons for sale on their showroom floor. One of the two Veyrons just so happens to be production #001. According to the dealer, O'Gara Coach, the car only has 400 miles on the odometer. The price tag? As the saying goes, if you have to ask then you can't afford. We'll tell you anyway. O'Gara Coach has the price tag listed at just under $2.4 million. While having #001 would be pretty cool, we'd actually opt for the black-on-black model that was also in the showroom. Not that we will ever come close to being able to afford either, but we can always dream.

Source: Autoblog

Impossibly rich? Mad about cars? Or just mad in a medical sense? Then step this way Sir. Yours for a snip at £16,000 a day (which is about $25k USK), the ultimate holiday rental: a Bugatti Veyron.

This is real. Quite honestly. A Berkshire-based leasing company called Holders Vehicle Contracts has at its disposal the world's fastest, priciest production car. The car that demanded months of negotiation before even the Stig was allowed to drive it. The car that needs a special set of tires to cope with its maximum speed. The car that Jenson Button himself is tooling around in when he's not winning back-to-back Grand Prix.

But now we can all have a go. Well some of us at any rate. That $25,000 daily outlay notwithstanding, you also need to be able to put down $160,000 as a deposit.

Source: TopGear

The mirror finish Bugatti Veyron in the image is an artwork by artist Olaf Nicolai, and the artistic installations of Anselm Reyle and Peter Zimmermann. The mirror finish Bugatti Veyron will be displayed in a mirrored room in the exhibition area of the newly opened "Premium Clubhouse". The Premium Clubhouse is Volkswagen Group's multi-brand luxury and premium division.

In his latest work, the artist Olaf Nicolai, who "creates mental spaces in which he explores aesthetic perceptions", used the mirror finish Bugatti Veyron to create the impression of an infinite reflection of anyone who looks at the car.

Source: Zercustoms

Bugatti boss Dr Franz-Josef Paefgen has said that the company will replace the Veyron supercar around 2012 with another ultra high-end model. The confirmation confounds previous speculation that Bugatti would be wound-up when Veyron production comes to an end.

"We will be staying on top of everybody else and we will not be producing a smaller, or cheaper car and we will not be moving volumes up. Bugatti customers are very extreme people,: he told Autocar.

Paefgen said that Bugatti hasn’t finally decided on the new model. One high-level source told us that the company was considering a second model line possibly a luxury saloon to rival the Rolls-Royce Phantom. He also told us that advanced biofuel technology was being considered and even diesel. More after the jump!

The possibility of Bugatti sharing components with Bentley is also being discussed at a high level. If Bugatti was to give the go ahead to a saloon, the car would be likely to share a platform, and other major components, with the next Arnage, due in 2012.

Autocar has also learned Bugatti will build an even more extreme version of the Veyron as the end of the current model’s production cycle. Although it is still officially denied by the company, we understand that some customers have put deposits down on a more powerful 'GT' version.

According to Bugatti engineering boss, Dr. Wolfgang Schreiber, it will be possible to get more power and torque from the 987bhp, quad-turbocharged 16-cylinder engine:

"We can go to 1106lb ft of torque and we currently have [922lb ft] - and with a turbocharged engine, engineers are always working on getting higher power." There has been speculation that the Veyron GT could top 1200bhp and be capable of 270mph.

Source: Autocar

At this weekend’s Concours d’Elegance classic car show in Pebble Beach, California, Bugatti performed the world debut of the all-new Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport. The open-top Veyron comes equipped with a removable lightweight transparent polycarbonate roof as well as with an emergency soft top that can be used to protect driver and passenger from sudden rainfall. According to Bugatti’s own words, the soft can be “stowed in the trunk like an umbrella”.

Powered by the same 1,001 HP quad-turbocharged 16-cylinder engine as the coupe, the world’s fastest convertible can achieve a top speed of 253 mph or 406 km/h with the polycarbonate roof in its place. Take the top off and the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport won’t let you go over 217 mph or 349 km/h. If you decide to use the soft top, the car’s top speed is limited to a mere 80 mph or 130 km/h. More in the jump!

In comparison to the Veyron coupe, the most noticeable differences on the Gran Sport are its higher windshield, newly designed LED headlights and the new horseshoe-style wheels.

The most important changes however are under the skin as the carbon fibre monocoque was substantially reinforced to cope with the structural loss of the open roof. According to Bugatti, the monocoque structure was reinforced around the side skirts and the transmission tunnel while the B-pillars were cross-stiffened using a carbon fibre support. Moreover, the redesigned air inlets now feature 10cm wide carbon fiber elements that provide protection in the event of rollover.

Other features new to the Gran Sport include a reverse camera with 2.7 inch monitor integrated in the rearview mirror and a “Puccini” sound system, specifically design for convertibles.

Bugatti will hand-build a total of 150 Veyron 16.4 Grand Sports with deliveries scheduled to begin from March 2009. The first 40 cars are reserved exclusively for current Bugatti customers with the exception of the first car that was auctioned off at the Gooding Auction on 17 August 2008 with all profits going to a charitable foundation.

Source: CarScoop

This weekend Top Gear, the UK-based car magazine, which is in the country for a photo shoot, sent out an urgent request for an unusual car, the million-dollar Bugatti Veyron.

It was hoping for one. Instead, it was offered three of the vehicles, which cost more than Dhs 4.4 million (USD $1.2m) each. “No other place in the world could we have found three Bugattis in a span of 48 hours,” said a relieved Charlie Turner, the creative director for the magazine.

he cars were tracked down by the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority and belong to local owners who wish to remain anonymous. Built by Volkswagen, the 1,000-horsepower vehicle can reach 255 MPH (407 KPH). One car in the shoot, a gleaming aluminium-bodied model, is one of only five in the world.

Guess he was one of the 220 Bugatti sales numbers that was recently published.

American Idol judge Simon Cowell is certainly not shy about his frivelous spending and that goes to show when he was caught driving around Los Angeles in his Veyron. Cowell bought the car in Los Angeles last October, in a huge car-buying splurge that month which saw him scoop up a Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe back in the UK. A snip in comparison to the Bugatti at just £300,000.

Cowell's love of speed is well known, having blitzed the BBC's Top Gear track in 1:47.1 last year - the eighth fastest time overall for the 'Star in a Reasonably Priced Car' segment and the third fastest non-professional driver in series eight.

The reality TV multi-millionaire who is reported to be worth over £100million already owns a fleet of luxury cars, including a Ferrari and a Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe.

In an interview with Top Gear he waxed lyricial about his Rolls Royce: "It's the most beautiful, most comfortable, best-engineered car ever built. I can hardly bring myself to say it but it's - oh, sod it! - perfect.

"When I drove the car I felt so good, I knew I had to have one. So, I spent £300,000 on one for my house here in LA. I'm going to pick up another when I get back to London and I am already on the waiting list for the 100EX cabriolet."

Source: DailyMail

In just two years time, Bugatti has managed to sell 220 Veyron supercars. With a price tag of $1.4 million, that 220 number is quite remarkable. It is one of the most expensive cars money can buy.

Currently, 132 examples of the supercar have been delivered with another 88 more being on order, which leaves only 80 remaining from the supposed 300 unit production run. Bugatti increased Veyron production last year to better meet demand, bringing the wait on a new one down to under 12 months.

I don't think we'll ever get sick of seeing this thing in action. In this clip, Clarkson of Top Gear talks about all of the R&D that goes into making a Veyron along with taking it for a spirited drive. Watch this clip and become jealous with us.

Let's get it on! In this episode of the popular TV show TopGear, host Richard Hammond races a Eurofighter (Typhoon Jet Fighter) in a Bugatti Veyron. Let's see if that W16 holds up and puts up a fight.

According to latest reports Bentley has developed a prototype Arnage powered by Bugatti’s mammoth 8.0L W16 quad-turbo engine, with all 1001hp being sent directly to the rear wheels. While such a huge amount of power without AWD might prove difficult to handle, a detuned version could be successful as a limited edition model for the many Bentley customers looking for something special with their customization.

Just in case you're having a great day, hearing about the owner of this car pictured above will make you feel not so great. A Ukrainian oil baron is the only man to own this rare edition Veyron. The one-thousand horsepower level wasn't enough, so he paid to have another 200HP added just so he can brag to his other oil baron friends. To top it off, he lives in Dubai's Burj Al Arab seven-star hotel, the only seven-star hotel in the world. Seriously, look it up.

Other cars in his stable include: a Mercedes SLR McLaren, a Pagani Zonda,a Maybach 62, a black Mercedes G55, a Ferrari F430, a Lamborghini Murcielago, a Hummer H2 and I don't even feel like listing more because I'm going to go cry.