Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport: Roofless Aggression

Motoring Channel Staff - 20/August/2008

Molsheim, France — Bugatti has added another model to its range of ultra cars, the Grand Sport.

As the name suggests, it big and sporty.

Basically a Bugatti Veyron with a removable roof section, the new model will allow well-heeled car collectors to feel the wind in their hair at 402.3km/h (250mph).

It also features new headlight designs that incorporate more LEDs than previously.

Powered by the same 1001 horsepower (736kW) 16-cylinder engine seen in the Bugatti Veyron coupe, the Grand Sport is expected to be take out the title of the world's fastest and most powerful roadster/convertible.

Technically speaking, it's not a conventional luxury convertible where you push a button and the roof folds away.

Instead it features removable roof panels instead of an automatically folding soft top or hard top.

Though the specifics are not yet clear because Bugatti is providing only small amounts of information at this stage, it is possible that the roof panel will not be able to be stored in the vehicle.

It appears to be a single-piece glass roof panel.

Update: It's official, the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport is a true roadster. It has a fixed roof that cannot be stored in the car. Rather, it has to be removed prior to driving.

With the roof on, the car can achieve speeds of 407km/h, and with the roof off it safely reach speeds of 360km/h.

However, if the roof panels are removed and it starts to rain, an "innovative folding roof stored in the luggage compartment can be opened up like an umbrella at any time" says Bugatti, adding that top speed is reduced to 130km/h with the temporary cloth roof.

Due to the removable roof panels, the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport needed to be reinforced in a range of areas, such as the B-pillars, around the side skirts and through the transmission tunnel and along the carbon fibre doors.

As Bugatti explains, "the two redesigned air intakes for the 16-cylinder mid-engine now feature 10-centimetre wide carbon-fibre elements to offer protection should the car roll."

Other features new to the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport include moisture-resistant backstitched leather, a reversing camera with a 2.7-inch monitor in the rear-view-mirror, and a “Puccini” sound system with digital signal processor.

The French company has confirmed that 150 Grand Sports will be built, with the first 50 going to current Bugatti customers. The price is €1.4 million per car and delivery time is around 12 months after the time of purchase due to driver customisation and build time.

However the first model was recently sold at auction for US$2.9 million.

Bugatti's world-beating Veyron Grand Sport doesn't have a rigid roof structure, and as with many convertible vehicles it employs various reinforcements to keep body rigidity and stiffness. 

According to Bugatti, the Veyron Grand Sport "incorporates innovative structural solutions, designed to ensure the roadster offers the same extremely high levels of performance and passive safety as the coupe version".

It's possible that boron or other high strength metals will be in use, reinforcing the door and floor structures.

This French 4WD super car has all the technology seen in the Bugatti Veyron coupe as well. 

Things like the W16 engine, the advanced cooling systems, the quad turbochargers, the lavish interior and key activated performance modes will all be included, but by incorporating a removable roof Bugatti has doubled the desirability factor.

Mechanically the vehicle will be very similar to its fixed roof sibling: power comes from an 8.0-litre W16-cylinder engine fed by four turbochargers and can generate 736kW (1001hp) @ 6000rpm. 

Putting the power down to all four wheels, the French super car belts out 1250Nm @ 2200rpm.

Unlike the coupe models, the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport is expected to be heavier and this is likely to hamper its acceleration slightly. 

The world-famous Bugatti Veyron coupe is a stunning 2.5 second sprinter, but the new roof-less Veyron Grand Sport is expected to cover the zero to 100km/h dash in about 2.8 seconds. 

Top speed is reduced slightly as well, but the car is still capable of eclipsing 400km/h.

Pricing will be completely unreasonable, around US$1.5 million, and the first model to be sold will be auctioned on August 16th at Pebble Beach Concourse d’Elegance in California.

Bugatti will release one model in 2008, and the following 149 Grand Sport Veyron models will begin production in the second quarter of 2009.

Related Links:
- Bugatti Veyron Fbg par Hermès (2009)
- Bugatti Veyron Pur Sang (2007)
- Bugatti 16.4 Veyron (2006)
- Bugatti Veyron 16/4 (2004)