Autoblog UK

There's going to be an addition to Volkswagen's luxury marque. The Veyron supercar is getting a big brother. The model is still at the design stage but is now being presented to customers around the world. With the Bugatti 16C Galibier, the manufacturer intends to offer a saloon as well at a future date.

First pictures show that this Bugatti has an elegant shape with a long bonnet, which opens on both sides. This high-class motor car has the obligatory two-tone colour paint job. Doors and wings are made of polished aluminium, the remaining bodywork is carbon fibre. And the rear is sheer poetry. In the cockpit, your gaze immediately alights on the small round gauges. And what do you see? A speedo needle that goes up to 260mph! The Galibier is four-wheel drive and, as in the Veyron, power comes from an 8-litre, 16-cylinder 1,001bhp engine with two-stage supercharging.

Men's hearts beat faster at the sight of a Bugatti Veyron. This sports car is one of the world's fastest production vehicles. Towards the end of April 2005, a Veyron broke the 400 km/h (250mph) barrier several times at the Volkswagen Test Facility under TÜV's watchful gaze. Average top speed during these tests was 408.47 km/h. The top speed entered in the vehicle's registration documents is given as 407 km/h.

Bugatti Veyron Coupe
407.5 km/h
1,001 horsepower
0-62: 2.5 sec

What is the most appropriate setting in which to unveil a special model costing €1.3 million? At the Concours d'Elegance in Pebble Beach, California, of course. VW subsidiary Bugatti celebrated its centenary by stealing the show with the Veyron Sang Bleu (French for 'blue blood'). Specially built for Pebble Beach, the bodywork of this roadster is a combination of royal blue carbon fibre and aluminium, which represents a new departure in the upmarket carmaker's traditional twin-tone design philosophy. The rear air vents are likewise in blue and the interior trim is a newly developed 'gaucho' leather that would come as a revelation even to an Argentinean cattle breeder. The figures for this Bugatti are out of this world: 1,001 horsepower, a top speed of around 250mph (400km/h plus) and acceleration from 0 to 62 in 2.5 seconds. Almost enough to make you overlook the colour.

French designer Bruno Delusso did not want to develop any old average concept car, but rather come up with something that took your breath away, and it certainly looks like he did that with the Bugatti Stratos design. Inspired by the Bugatti Type 57, Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Mille Miglia and Raymond Loewy's famous locomotive designs, he came up with this futuristic car.

Volkswagen subsidiary Bugatti is celebrating its 100th anniversary by the shores of Lake Como. And as a birthday gift to their well-heeled clientele, this exclusive marque has produced four special editions of the Veyron. These appear in four different colour schemes: red for the Italian market, green for the UK, blue for France and white for Germany.

The jubilee paint jobs (with matching interiors) have been carefully mixed to recreate the livery of the top Bugatti drivers from each of those four countries. They are being a bit cagey about the price, but we can assume that there will be a hefty surcharge on top of the basic €1.3m price tag. In the context of the 80th Concorso D'eleganza Villa d'Este, there were also some real collectors' items on display.

Making economies and being environmentally friendly: what would a car show be without models that laugh at the worldwide economical crisis? If a major group like Volkswagen celebrates the birthday of one of its subsidiaries that happens to be celebrating its centenary, then environmental issues can arguably be briefly overlooked. Here, we are of course talking about the VW subsidiary Bugatti, who presented an exclusive one-off Bugatti Veyron at the Geneva Motor Show. The gallery contains some pics of this 1001bhp monster. Have them on us!

Publicity-shy American Dr. Harold Car hid a Bugatti Type 57S Atalante in his garage for years. This jewel was built in 1937 and last weekend it found a new owner, when a European bidder secured it at an auction in Paris for 4.4 million USD. If the new owner has the car restored after years of neglect, it is estimated that its value could be doubled. The following gallery is a must for old-timer fans.

The Bugatti Veyron now exists as a three-course menu. No, not outside some restaurant or other, but as a video in three parts. Part One is the entrée, with fast-moving images of the luxury vehicle traversing the Swedish snow. In Part Two, the main course, we see the Bugatti flying even faster through the landscape, and for dessert, we see it vanishing into the setting sun.

Bon appétit.

If the current list of Bugatti Veyron derivatives isn't confusing enough, the automaker is developing yet another variant to be available to customers in April 2009. The new supercar is an open-top Veyron Grand Sport 'Sang Noir' (French for 'black blood') -- it's essentially an evil-looking unpainted carbon-fiber version of the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport targa. The exposed version will be very limited in production (remember, only 15 Sang Noir models are to be built in coupe form), and likely limited to a top speed slightly below 253 mph. Considering the first Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport went for $3.19 million at auction, we can only imagine where these will be priced.