The Chiron Concept received minor but strategic revisions to enable a top speed of 304mph.
Photo by Bugatti
So how fast is fast? 60 mph? 120 mph? Most drivers will start to worry about their speed when they exceed 75 mph. At the Ehra-Lessien test track in Germany last month, the Bugatti Chiron, driven by Le Mans winning racer Andy Wallace, reached a new world record speed (for a production car) of 304.773 mph.
French firm Bugatti wanted to be the first production carmaker to reach the magic number of 300 mph. And they were.
The previous fastest speed was 284mph set by a Koenigsegg Atera RS back in 2017. Breaking this speed record, as certified by Germany’s TÜV organization, marks the end of Bugatti’s long pursuit to build the world’s fastest cars according to the firm’s CEO, Stephan Winkelmann. “We have shown that we build the fastest cars in the world several times. In the future our company will focus on other areas.”
That comment makes a lot of sense. Because to remain the fastest means huge budgets and manpower being channeled into development and testing. And when you’re trying to make and sell cars, that process can be self-defeating as so much input is needed from all departments of the company.
All 4 tires had to be fully X-rayed to ensure their integrity before the record-breaking drive.
Photo by Bugatti
The biggest challenge, according to head designer Frank Heyl, is to get the over-all package just right. That extends beyond design, aerodynamics and engine power or even tires, which are critically important. You have to get everything just right. Even the weather has to be suitable to break records.
Measuring 10 inches longer than the standard Chiron, this car has been revised for maximum speed. To achieve that, the rear wing and airbrake have been deleted to reduce drag and the diffuser is far bigger than the standard car to improve downforce and maintain high speed stability.
On the power side, the Chiron’s quad-turbo 8.0-liter W16 engine has been tweaked to pump out a little more than 1500hp, power that is channeled to all four wheels. The tires were specially developed by Michelin using a dedicated compound and reinforcement. After extensive development and testing. According to Bugatti, the tires were tested in the USA up to 318 mph, and need to be super strong to rotate up to 4,100 times every minute. Each tire was even X-rayed before the record attempt to ensure there were no defects.
After several practice runs, Wallace says he spent one lap warming up the tires and then used the 5-mile long straight to achieve the top speed. And now that the 300mph barrier has been broken, I can’t see why any carmaker would want to go further. Hang on, maybe some car company will push for the magic 500 km/h record. After all it’s a bigger number than 300. That’s human nature I guess.
