The History of Bugatti’s W16 Record-Breakers When Bugatti launched the incredible Veyron in 2005 it totally rewrote the hypercar rulebook. A 1000 horsepower, 8.0l Quad-Turbo W16, rocket ship which was as refined as a Rolls-Royce and as easy to drive as a Golf. And with a top speed of 253mph, it officially became the fastest car in the world. Five years later, Bugatti modified the Veyron and created the 1200 horsepower, Veyron Super Sport. At the VW’s Ehra-Lessien test track, down the 5.4 mile straight, it achieved a top speed of 267mph, setting a new top speed record. With these records and its refined construction, the Veyron is arguably one of the most important hypercars of all time. A decade after Bugatti launched the Veyron, came its long awaited successor, the Chiron. The car still maintained its 8.0L Quad-Turbo W16 which was tuned up to produce 1479 horsepower. Bugatti would once again later modify the Chiron with a sleeker look to create 1580 horsepower Chiron Super Sport 300+. With Andy Wallace, Bugatti’s chief test driver behind the wheel became the first official road car to break the 300mph barrier at Ehra-Lessien. On the 5.4 mile straight, the Chiron Super Sport 300+ maxed at 305mph. After this milestone, then-CEO Stephen Winkelmann announced that Bugatti would no longer be breaking records. Only for new CEO Mate Rimac to retract this statement and just two months ago, a bespoke convertible variant of the Chiron, called the Mistral set an all new top-speed record for convertibles. Billed as the swansong to Bugatti’s W16 engine, this car produced the same 1578 horsepower as the Chiron Super Sport. Instead of Ehra-Lessien, Bugatti carried out the test at the infamous Papenberg High-Speed Oval in North West Germany. This was due to Bugatti no longer being under the ownership of VW but instead Rimac. With Andy Wallace, once again at the wheel, the car achieved of top speed of 282mph, setting an all new record for Convertible Hypercars. All these cars make a use of Bugatti’s iconic 8.0l Quad-Turbo W16, a monstrous power house of torque, power and speed. Sadly due to the stringent emission regulations have rendered Bugatti’s W16 as no longer viable. Still its delightful that in its 20 year run, it managed to break so many records. What went on behind the scenes of the Mistral Top Speed Run? Bugatti originally intended to limit the Mistral to a top speed of 261mph. However British Businessman Reuben Singh who owned every record edition of Bugatti’s hypercars, discussed with Bugatti CEO to give a proper unlimited top-speed run. Not every owner wants to push their $14.7 million hypercar to the max. Read More Bugatti Mistral Sets World Record Speed For Convertibles: Overtaking Hennessey and Ending the W16’s Tenure on a High Note Bugatti organised a Hollywood-grade film crew, complete with an Audi RS6 tracking car and a helicopter pilot, to film the record run. However, it’s clear an RS6 is no match for a Chiron so instead Bugatti rolled out a Chiron Super Sport to get the shots at the immense speeds of 237mph and above. During the day, 6°C were the ambient temperatures, which helped to keep the efficiency of the W16’s turbos at a maximum. Prior to the official run, Wallace took the Mistral for a warm-up lap to gain heat into the. During the Mistral reached 124mph on the banked corners to prepare the car for a high-speed blast down the main straight on the record run. During these runs, he remarked, “Throughout the testing program leading up to this moment, it was incredible to feel how stable the car felt – I got the sense that it wanted to go faster.” Eventually, the boffins at Bugatti and SGS-TÜV Saar GmbH lined the car with speed measurements, setting a speed trap and all was ready for the top speed run. And achieving 282mph, the Mistral set an official new record for convertible hypercars as well as send the W16 off in style. For this 2-decade-old war horse to break a new top speed record is impressive right until the end of its life cycle. The Tourbillon and its hybrid V16 certainly has a lot to live up to in this regard. Source: TopGear
