VIDEO: The Superest of Supercar Shootouts: Bugatti Veyron vs. McLaren F1 on Top Gear
Bugatti Veyron vs. McLaren F1 – Click above to watch video after the jump
Episode 2 of Top Gear's 13th season aired last night in the UK, and the main event was a one-mile drag race between the McLaren F1 and the Bugatti Veyron. Notice that we didn't say a McLaren F1 and a Bugatti Veyron. These two supercars are so super (and rare) that any single example tends to represent the whole run of each, and since your chances of encountering two of either kind in the same place are practically nill, they might as well be the only ones in existence.
The Top Gear crew chose Abu Dhabi as the location for its supercar shootout. With an arid climate that sees practically no rain or freezing-and-thawing cycles, the roads in Abu Dhabi are long, straight and, most importantly, free of pot holes. Richard Hammond chooses to pilot the Bug and The Stig takes the centrally located wheel of the F1. We won't spoil the results except to say that this is the most real and nail-biting competition that we've seen on Top Gear in a long time.
Follow the jump to watch yesteryear's supercar, the McLaren F1, go head-to-head with today's top dog, the Bugatti Veyron. Thanks for the tip, Will!
[Source: YouTube]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
EU_reader 12:37PM (6/29/2009)
Top gear is king in car entertainment shows. And they get the best cars for almost everything.
The episode as a whole was pretty weak though, but the segment of the last murcielago and these two in the middle east was music to my ears.
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FThorn 12:38PM (6/29/2009)
Not sure the whole Fry/Grnder thing was apropos.
And I follow Fry on twitter, too. (Like 600,000+ others do)
l.i.dave 1:11PM (6/29/2009)
Why does these top gear clowns keep ducking the Aero SCC?
AruthK 1:34PM (6/29/2009)
I highly doubt that an american car with a faux lambo/ferrari aesthetic with a top speed a mere 4mph faster than the veyron would appeal to the top gear crew.
Personally, i like the veyron better than the mclaren. If you don't like a car with a quad-turbo'ed 16-cylinder 8L engine, you don't like cars.
mikhalian 1:59PM (6/29/2009)
@l.i.dave: The way I understood it, it was the other way round. SCC seems reluctant to let anyone drive the aero.
MikeW 4:53PM (6/29/2009)
I don't like the Veyron, but I respect it.
There isn't anything 'pure' about the Veyron design.
It is about taking a sledge hammer to make a square peg fit a round hole.
The engine is just two VR8s, or two W8s depending on how you want to look at. Then they slapped 4 turbos to it. There are only two throttles on the W16, and 'only' 16 fuel injectors.
havoc 6:10PM (6/29/2009)
@MikeW: i love the veyron for that exact reason, it is a testament of indulgence and pomp... and it kicks complete a55 while doing it.
i saw one a couple weeks ago, got nice and close. i was disappointed with the front end and some of the materials looked plasticky and cheap. i also saw an f1 at the same event, guess which one was under lock and key?
Turall 6:19PM (6/29/2009)
You thought that was a weak episode?
The teen-car challenge was pure and utter hilarity (I had to pause the video I was laughing so hard). The drag race was one of the best I've seen. They had a great guest (the legendary Stephen Fry). The news was as funny as usual. We got to ogle at the sight and sounds of the wildest Lamborghini ever built.
It was a fantastic episode.
FThorn 12:37PM (6/29/2009)
Watched it. Doesn't the Mc look a bit high off the road? I would lower it. Still sounds and runs very nice.
How do they keep the roads clear of sand?
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paul 12:52PM (6/29/2009)
"How do they keep the roads clear of sand?"
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
zamafir 12:58PM (6/29/2009)
It was alright. Not using launch control on the veyron was a little disappointing. Maybe they'll do a second run and not use the clutch on the F1.
Beastage 2:53PM (6/29/2009)
It was staged so that the mclaren gets of the line faster and the veyron catches up, hamster was using full auto mode on the veyron without launch control.
MikeW 3:07PM (6/29/2009)
It was realistic. If you were driving, and happened to lineup against a McF1...
Javanese 6:15PM (6/29/2009)
The McF1 is a bit tall on the road for one very simple reason, ride quality. If you notice the tires are not really a low profile tire that you would normally see on todays supercars. This is what set the F1 aside from normal supercars which is basically a thinly disgused race cars that you cant drive everyday.
The only F1 achilles heel that I can think off is it's clutch which crap (for a daily driver that is). I heard some where that it can only survive 4-6 hard launches before shattering to bits. I wonder why McLaren never bothered to developed a better one as time progressed. Not like they cant.
Dont forget that it got steel brakes too like what you would have on a normal Mitsubishi. If they upgraded it to a carbon based brakes i bet it would make the F1 at least 40kg lighter.
mATTHEW 12:44PM (6/29/2009)
Sorry, but the Mclaren was simply breath taking! What an absolutely incredible car! It brought me to tears! That is the most insanely awesome car ever made. The Bugatti has Quad turbo's and with 16 cylinders, and that was the best it could do? Totally unimpressive showing by the Bugatti.
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kbye 12:47PM (6/29/2009)
keep in mind that the f1 was driven by the stig and the bug, by hammond. So seeing the veyron driven by a non-professional and still beating the f1 is quite a feat.
mil6es 12:50PM (6/29/2009)
dude how hard is it do drive the Veyron, its paddle shift, you literally press a button, the F1 on the other hand is full manual which is significantly harder
HotRodzNKustoms 12:50PM (6/29/2009)
@kbye
What would a professional would have done differently in a car that all you have to do is point it in the right direction and mash the gas? Not like it has a clutch pedal.
The FedEx Man 1:18PM (6/29/2009)
It would be interesting to see a race in a cooler climate. 40 degree heat isn't exactly ideal for the turbo's on the Bug.
I wonder what time the F1 would get on the test track? Mid 1:17?
MikeW 3:07PM (6/29/2009)
The Veyron could have been faster/quicker with launch control & top speed mode.
It could have been slower if it started in handling mode.