A Near Production Chiron Makes the Run
Three hundred miles per hour is an insane speed for any car. That’s why it was a serious benchmark for all automakers. SSC, Koenigsegg, Hennessey Performance, and Bugatti were all making a run at breaking the 300 mph barrier, and now it seems that Bugatti has done it in a “near-production” Chiron.
Bugatti shot out a press release showcasing the car that broke the barrier and releasing the car’s official speed. The vehicle hit a speed of 304.773 mph. This is a world record for a car like the Chiron.
“What a record! We’re overjoyed to be the first manufacturer ever to have achieved a speed of more than 300 miles per hour. It’s a milestone for eternity. I would like to thank the whole team and driver Andy Wallace for this outstanding performance,” said Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti.
Bugatti should be thrilled with this effort. The company is the first of the big supercar automakers trying for it to achieve the speed. Koenigsegg, Hennessey Performance, and SSC were all gunning for the 300 mph mark with their own cars. Bugatti hasn’t released all of the information of the car that made the run. All that the company said of the car was that it was “a near-production prototype derivative of the hyper sports car Chiron.” This feat is truly impressive.
UPDATE: Bugatti Releases More Information
After the initial posting on the company’s website, Bugatti saw fit to update the information and tell us more about the car that made the run and the run itself. The driver was Andy Wallace. He drove the car at the test track at Ehra-Lessien in Lower Saxony.
The Bugatti team were supported by Italian race specialist Dallara and Michelin. The tire company provided the tires that were designed to withstand the rigors of going so fast. The world record car was fitted with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires. New ones were fitted right before the car took its record-setting run.
The car itself featured some aerodynamic improvements and some safety upgrades, including a six-point belt and safety cell. The aerodynamic improvements were done to ensure the car would handle well at the supremely high speed. The engine was gone over by Bugatti engineers and tested extensively to ensure everything would function properly. The Head of Development Stafan Ellrott said he was pleased with the result. “We had the technology under control at an early stage. But a world record attempt on an open track can have a few surprises in store. We were lucky today and everything went well.”
Bugatti also released some additional images and video. We’ve included these below.
