The car, fully named Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, arrived on the market in 2012 and was a direct response of the French-German automaker to customer demand for the most powerful Veyron Super Sport without a roof. Bugatti therefore employed its best designers and presented the fastest roadster, i.e. two-seater open car, in the world to this day.
–
Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse
Photo: Bugatti
The biggest challenge for Bugatti at the time was to ensure that the car, even without a roof, was stable and strong enough to handle high speed or a potential accident. Because of the rigidity, the engineers designed a removable polycarbonate roof part with a rigidity of up to 22,000 Nm.
–
But the car also had to be stiff on the axle and in the monocoque. This is also why the side sills or B-pillars were reinforced. To prevent torsional flexing, the engineers used carbon fibers on the transmission tunnel and the car doors were modified as well. In short, everything was subordinated to making the car safe and solid.
–
“Without the roof, the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse showed just how unrivaled Bugatti’s technical expertise is. Although the weight distribution is completely different when the roof is down, the vehicle still remained stable and accelerated as if it had the roof,” said Bugatti President Christophe Piochon.
–
The W16-engined car later became the fastest production roadster in the world, setting a record of 408.84 km/h that still stands today. All this with the roof down, but also with 1,200 horses under the hood.
–
“We reduced the interior noise and turbulence to an absolute minimum thanks to the spoiler and deflector. Even at a speed of 200 km/h, passengers could have a quiet conversation, which was the main wish of the customers,” added Piochon.
–
Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse
Photo: Bugatti
The presentation of the Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse is indelibly written in the history of Bugatti and, according to many, set a new path ten years ago for engineers who still follow it today.
–
