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]

Yesterday we happened to be in Beverly Hills and came across a dealership that had not one, but two Bugatti Veyrons for sale. Of course, we had to stop in to check the cars out, and found that one was actually production #001. According to the dealer, O'Gara Coach, the car only has 400 miles on the odometer. The price tag? As the saying goes, if you have to ask then you can't afford. We'll tell you anyway. O'Gara Coach has the price tag listed at just under $2.4 million. While having #001 would be pretty cool, we'd actually opt for the black-on-black model that was also in the showroom. Not that we will ever come close to being able to afford either, but we can always dream. We've uploaded a high-res gallery of both Bugattis that can be browsed below.



Photos copyright ©2009 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.

The marque's faithful (read: the obscenely wealthy) have been waiting a long time for a convertible Bugatti. The last time a roadster rolled out of Molsheim was in the company's heyday before WWII, and despite our teenage fantasies, no roofless EB110 ever materialized from the Romano Artioli era. But after over a half century's wait, Bugatti has officially returned to the world of open-air motoring.

The most exclusive of exclusive automakers came to Pebble Beach last year with the Veyron Grand Sport, and auctioned off the first example for a whopping $2.19 million. Now the targa-topped Veyron is officially beginning its production run, with deliveries to commence in July. If you're one of those who's been waiting for the opportunity, good economy or bad, you'd better act quickly: Bugatti is only making 150 examples of the world's fastest roadster, with the first 50 units going to existing Veyron owners. Asking price, before the inevitable succession of special editions, is nearly $2 million, which ought to make your eyes water even more than the air kissing your face at 224 mph. Check out the details in the press release after the jump and the fresh crop of high-res images added to the gallery below.



[Source: Bugatti]

It must be a month with the letter "R" in it, because Bugatti is releasing yet another special edition Veyron. Following up on the one-off Blue Centenaire that was shown in Geneva to celebrate the marque's 100th anniversary, the latest is actually a corral of four special editions, each in a different color and dedicated to the legend of one of the company's pre-WWII racing drivers: Sir Malcolm Campbell, Hermann zu Leiningen, Jean-Pierre Wimille and Achille Varzi.

Each car gets a two-tone exterior treatment in grand Bugatti style: polished aluminum on the front fenders and doors, with the rear section, roof and hood in contrasting colors to match the legendary drivers' classic machines: Italian racing red, French racing blue, British racing green and an off-white to represent Germany, whose historic racing color was silver. So far only these low-res images have surfaced over on Motorpasion, so they will have to hold us over until Bugatti rolls out the quadruplets at the exclusive Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este show, which opens its gates this weekend on the shores of Lake Como.



[Source: Motorpasion]

Bugatti Veyron Pur Sang edition - Click above for a hi-res gallery

When Bugatti rolled out the limited-edition Pur Sang edition of its Veyron at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show, European customers snapped up all five before any American buyers could get their checkbooks out. As a result, Bugatti had to make the Sang Noir the following year and offer U.S. customers first crack at the limited run of fifteen. But for those who really wanted the original polished-aluminum and bare-carbon-fiber edition that kicked off the raft of special-edition Veyrons that followed, they may get that chance as one appears to have popped up for sale.

A premium car dealership in Abu Dhabi has posted an example of the Pur Sang for sale on its website. In all likelihood, this is the same example that was spotted on video a year ago and which showed up for the Top Gear photo shoot in good company a few months later. No word on price, or even confirmation that this is, indeed, a Pur Sang, but the website does allow you to place the order immediately. And if that doesn't tickle your fancy, they've got a Mansory Vincero up for grabs, too. Follow the link to check it out.



[Source: Prestige Cars via CarScoop]

Bare carbon fiber, chrome, French racing blue...Bugatti's done just about everything to the Veyron but plate it in gold. Oops, look like we spoke to soon, as our favorite Orwelian supercar has proven once again that all Veyrons are special, but some are more special than others.

Like the gold-plated Rolls-Royce Phantom DHC, this gilded Bugatti was ordered for delivery to the Middle East. But unlike the myriad Veyrons in the United Arab Emirates, this one has been purchased by a Kuwaiti customer just up the Persian Gulf coast, who reportedly actually drives it in between the occasional $10,000 detailing jobs and storage in a climate-controlled chamber.

Generally speaking, we're not big fans of this particular brand of wretched excess, but as far as gold-plated, seven-figure supercars go, the gold-and-tan combination is relatively tasteful.

[Source: Motor Authority]

If you were disappointed by the Bleu Centenaire edition of the Veyron that Bugatti unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show this month to celebrate its 100th anniversary, you're not alone. Hopes were high that the long-anticipated higher-output version of the Veyron would be unveiled at the Swiss show. But fret not, at least if these latest reports are to be believed, as Bugatti is said to be preparing an altogether new car that will be unveiled in September.

Details are scarce at this point, but keen to stay ahead of the competition, Bugatti is said to be considering several options that would, figuratively speaking, fit into the same mold as the Veyron. That means another seven-figure, record-beating supercar, likely with an even more powerful version of the Veyron's thousand-horsepower, quad-turbo W16 engine. With Veyron production winding to a close, we could see a concept version of its successor at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show after the summer break, with the next Bugatti hitting the market in 2011 or 2012. The hope is by that time people might actually have the cash to blow on a new supercar.



[Source: Autovisie via AutoTelegraaf.nl (translated)]

Given the level of bespoke specification that is part-and-parcel with the Bugatti Veyron ordering experience, we doubt there have ever been two identical cars built. As such, each example is something of a one-off, and by this rationale, the Bleu Centenaire is, paradoxically, just another Veyron.

Pre-show rumors of a massive power infusion and a stratospheric 270 mile-per-hour vMax have proven to be utterly unfounded, as the BC's drivetrain is standard Veyron fare. The changes, then, essentially amount to cosmetic paint-and-trim, but to be fair, the Blue Centenaire does look quite fetching in its mix of matte and glossy blue paint.

Sadly, however, any reclaiming of the top speed title from Shelby SuperCars will evidently have to wait.

It may have only been ten years or so since the Volkswagen Group relaunched Bugatti, but anyone familiar with historic automobiles – or automotive history – will tell you that the stoic automaker has been around a lot longer than that. 100 years, to be exact. Although there were periods in between when the carmaker was dormant, it's been a century since the venerated Ettore Bugatti launched his company. Bugatti's patrons in the Volkswagen Group aren't about to miss that opportunity, and to that end, they are reportedly working on something special to present at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show.

Bugattis are special enough as they are, but special Veyrons are hardly uncommon in the scheme of things. Bugatti has launched a seemingly endless succession of special edition supercars with unique paint schemes and trim packages. If the latest rumors are to be believed, however, the new special Bugatti could be very special indeed. Supposedly called the Centenaire edition, reports suggest the special Veyron an increased power rating – word on the street has always been that the Veyron's quad-turbo W16 was always capable of more than the already astronomic 1000 horsepower rating it got – up to some 1350 horses, good enough to boost the top end up to 420 km/h (261 miles-per-hour) from the current benchmark of 400 km/h (253 mph). Special paint schemes and trim pieces will surely be part of the mix as well, but hitting the Willard Scott mark may prove enough to warrant a more substantial birthday gift if the rumors are to be believed. We'll know for sure soon as the Geneva show is just around the corner.


[Source: Autoblog.nl]

When Bugatti started production of the Veyron back in 2005, it was supposed to build 300 examples. For a long time, that total seemed pretty ambitious considering the seven-figure price tag on the most super of contemporary supercars, but according to Molsheim, all but 50 have been built and sold. Add to that another 150 examples of the Grand Sport roadster version and you've got 450. Whether special editions like the Pur Sang, Sang Noir and Hermes are counted as part of the original production figures or considered supplemental specials is insignificant, considering that only a handful of each are to be built.

The one wrinkle that has us wondering about all of these million-dollar supercars is that it was only last March when it was announced that Bugatti had sold 220 cars (of which only 132 had been built). Given how long it took them to get to 220, that seems like one heck of an order ramp-up, particularly given the state of the global economy.

The bottom line is that if you've been dragging your feet over whether to spend that extra million on a Bugatti or not, better make your mind up fast. Like, Veyron fast.


[Source: Autotelegraaf via Autogespot]