While speaking about supercars from the last decade, the Bugatti Veyron is bound to come up among the top names. Some might say it was an overkill with that massive engine, we’d say it’s an engineering masterpiece. Winning several accolades for its performance and being made in some incredibly expensive special editions, the Veyron still stands as one of the fastest road-legal cars in the world.
Published April 8, 2024
The Bugatti Veyron was launched back in 2005 after several years of research and development done right. Initially, the hypercar was targeted to be launched with a naturally aspirated W18 motor! And a few prototypes were built too with the same motor. However, the engineers came to their senses and settled for a slightly “smaller” quad-turbo W16 though! Not only the motor, but the car also received a bit of aviation tech too. With a practical top speed of over 250 mph, the Veyron went on to set some speed records as well as acceleration records. The convertible version of the Veyron is still the fastest road-legal roadster to exist as well.
Expensive cars are also expensive to maintain, but supercars do require an extra bit of attention. However, the Veyron surpasses almost everything and takes maintenance costs to another level. Annually, you need to shell out about thirty-four grand just to carry out the basic oil change and the mandatory detailing services!
This is one of the most important bits of the car. To get the wheels serviced, you need to ship the car back to France, right to Bugatti’s factory. And it takes quite some time as well. So imagine the overall time taken for the swap and all the trouble one needs to go through. Yet, considering this is the Veyron we are talking about, the trouble is worth it.
The Veyron is comfortable enough to be driven around regularly, given one can bear the cost of quenching its massive thirst. A good number of the Veyron sold are used by their owners and the average mileage on a used example ranges from 15,000-20,000 miles. Examples with 10,000 or lower miles on the odometer can fetch more than $1 million!
A total of 100 units of the Veyron were affected by faulty fuel gauge. While the brand issued a recall for the issue, it is not official that all the affected models were rectified. The fault was that the fuel gauge read full even though the tank wasn’t.
Another issue that hit some models was the faulty underbody panels of the Veyron. The issue was corrosion and falling off of the underbody aluminum panels of the car. Do check for it thoroughly.
The transmission of the Veyron is no simple thing since it has to withstand the immense torque of the motor. Along with the dual-clutch layout, the transmission requires a religious maintenance interval or it might lead to damages. Do check the transmission’s health thoroughly.
While lifting the car, the jack plates on the underbody take the weight of the vehicle. In some models of the Veyron, the jack plates were found to be weak which could lead to them being embedded with the chassis as well. Do check for it, and replace it if required.
The 8.0L quad-turbocharged W16 is an immense powerhouse. With over 1,000 horses and more than 921 lb-ft of torque on tap always, the motor compromises the fuel economy to a serious extent. Inside the city limits, the motor returns only an average of 7 mpg while the number increases to 11 mpg on highways. However, in real life, the numbers are lower. At top speed, the motor empties the fuel tank in under 12 minutes only!
The alloy wheels of the Veyron are specially designed to withstand its practical top speed of 250 mph. It needs to be in perfect condition at all times to handle all the power and torque of the motor as well. As such, the wheels require a complete replacement at an interval of 2-3 years.
Just like its powertrain, the Veyron’s cabin is a work of art. Draped with premium leather upholstery and magnesium trims for the control knobs, the car’s cabin exudes luxury from every aspect possible. However, a lack of proper maintenance can make the surfaces prone to damage and cracks. Do check out the interior thoroughly.
No Comments Yet