Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Timeline
1999: World premiere of the Bugatti EB 18/4 Veyron eighteen-cylinder concept car at the Tokyo Motor Show.
2001: Bugatti announces that the sixteen-cylinder Veyron 16.4 is in the advanced concept stage. Production of about fifty cars per year is planned, beginning in 2003. Bugatti claims a top speed of 252 mph.
2002-2003: Early production units experience significant safety and performance issues (specifically at high speed), and the Veyron 16.4 project is sent back to the drawing board.
2004: At the 2004 Geneva auto show, Bugatti says that the revised Veyron 16.4 will be produced and customers will begin taking delivery in late 2005.
2006: Bugatti releases performance numbers for the production Veyron 16.4: 1001 hp, 922 lb-ft of torque, 253 mph top speed (governed), 0 to 62 mph in 2.5 seconds, 0 to 124 mph in 7.3 seconds, 0 to 186 mph in 16.7 seconds. Sticker price: a cool $1.3 million.
2008: Bugatti Veyron 16.4 sales hit 220 worldwide.
To The Limiter:
The details of a speed run are revealed in the downloads. Below, velocity and engine rpm are plotted versus time. The top graph proves that the car ran faster than 250 mph for 25 seconds. The bottom graph shows that when the speed limiter kicked in, the engine was limited to 6250 rpm in seventh gear.