The automotive news this week is really crazy. Less than one week from the Frankfurt Motorshow and we have a new fastest car in the world, two new Ferrari(s), and the first ever all electric Porsche. Let’s talk about the one that I’ve been the most impressed first. Bugatti just beat (again) the speed record for a road-legal car with their Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300. Again? Text: Mickael B. ©, Images, Videos: Bugatti S.A.S. ©
With more and more restrictive speed limits, does it still make sense to race for the fastest car?
Yes you read it right. The race to the fastest top speed is still a thing. Some might argue that nowadays it is completely useless with police departments and traffic laws being more and more restrictive year after year, but if you look at the sheer performance of it, you can only be speechless. So, who’s still in that race anyway? Well, apart from the top notch French manufacturer, we have the crazy Swedish Koenigsegg with the Agera, and the cowboys from Hennessey thanks to their monstruous Venom. And I really believe the record from Bugatti will now stand for some time. The french automotive manufacturer, who is part of the Volkswagen Automotive Group has been used to set speed records since its rebirth in the late 2000s.
The Bugatti Veyron set in its time the 250 miles per hour (400 km/h) benchmark
Who did not remember that Captain Slow, alias Topgear (now The Grand Tour) presenter James May achieved the mighty Veyron’s top speed of 407 km/h (252 miles per hour)? At the time, no other manufacturer had even gone above 250 mph or 400 km/h, and nobody thought it was technically possible. Technically. That was the keyword for the Veyron, and is still for the Chiron. Both cars are such a technical achievement when you consider it completely, that it is mindblowing.
Of course, the Chiron is just an improvement to the Veyron, and the Bugatti introduced the hypercar league that we have now seen followed by so many other car manufacturers. The Veyron could not only achieve tremendous level of performance, it was four wheel drive, as easy to drive as a VW Golf, as comfortable as a Bentley, and more luxurious than any other car on the planet. The Veyron had set the new benchmark.
I had doubts the Chiron would be the new benchmark within its rivals. The Bugatti Chiron Super Sport proved me wrong.
When Bugatti came out with the Chiron, I had some doubts that it might just be a Veyron facelift. After all, the Veyron was such a financial disaster for Volkswagen that they might have wanted more return on investment, sacrificing future speed records for the financial stake. Although Bugatti branded the Chiron as a brand new car, I always saw it as a minor upgrade to the Veyron. The engine is almost the same (just decreased capacity and more power), it still has four wheel drive, and a very similar shape than its predecessor. The fact as well that the french brand never announced an official top speed for the Chiron, simply saying that it could achieve over 250 miles per hour, disappointed me and confirmed me in my opinion that we would never see speed records for a while.
The Bugatti Chiron Super Sport achieved 300 miles per hour. That’s a HUGE leap.
I was right. Until a few days ago. After revealing the Divo, a limited 5 unit series, then the Voiture Noire and the Centodieci limited series, all based on the Chiron, I was getting desperate to see a new speed record from Bugatti. And coming out of nowhere, they announced that they did it. More importantly they just did not break any speed barrier. The Veyron Supersport had achieved 431 km/h or 268 mph. It’s not like as if the french manufacturer has achieved 432 km/h / 269 mph. No. Andy Wallace, official driver for the brand, broke the 300 miles per hour barrier, i.e. 490 km/h.
That is a huge leap. Huge. Like really HUGE, when you consider how every additional increment on the speedometer is another milestone to accomplish at that level of performance. And given how Bugatti just destroyed the speed game right now, I am suddenly wondering if it is really that difficult, or if this is just some sort of urban legend and misconception that is all a big lie. Well, I am sure it’s not, but damn… 300 miles per hour!
500 km/h is just a doorstep a way and I believe the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport could do it
300 miles per hour. Almost 500 km/h. I was thinking that Bugatti would try to get over the 450 km/h landmark (280 mph), specially as Koenigsegg was holding the official record since november 2017 close to this speed. Was I ever thinking we would have a car going over 20 mph over this speed? Never. And yet they did it. In a car with a radio, a sat nav, air conditioning, and that you can actually use. So, let’s talk about this special Chiron the french manufacturer used to beat this record. Well it is not exactly your standard Chiron and Bugatti decided to produce it as a limited 30 unit series called Super Sport 300+. Price tag? Over 3.5 million €.
Its major visual difference is its long tail to provide better aerodynamics at higher speeds, as well as the larger air intakes. On the interior side, except a full roll cage, the car is pretty much the same, which makes this achievement even more incredible. So really well done Bugatti and onto the next achievement. Who will achieve it? The french manufacturer claim they could have easily gone faster if they had tested the car on a higher ground track, such as the one used by Koenigsegg in Nevada, but will it be the Swedish manufacturer or the crazy Texans from Hennessey performance to beat the new record? Bugatti announced that they would be leaving the race, but should we believe them? Let’s see…
Check out the official photo gallery below.
