BUGATTI VEYRON DRIVEN !!!
Discussion
At 6.30am yesterday morning I collected Simon and Alys on our way to Luton Airport. We arrived at around 7. We did not need to be there before 8 but hey we wanted to make sure that we would not be late. Chris, Geoff, Jill and Kate arrived at 8.40, we were due to take off at 8.30. They had had a nightmare journey down the M1 the night before. Just past Junction 11 on the M1 apparently a tanker carrying sulphuric acid had either overturned or gone through the central reservation about 800 metres in front of them. They heard seven dead. They were stuck for hours until the central reservation barrier was cut through so they could continue.
So we flew out on a privately hired citation jet to a smallish airport just outside Molsheim in France about an hour and 15 minutes. We were met buy a guy from the factory and John Morrison from Jack Barclay UK. I'd seen John before around race circuits but never really been introduced. He's been racing for 34 years, raced at Le Mans, Daytona etc. you could say he's been around a bit. So were driven to the factory not far away in a couple of mini buses. We are then met and taken into their office area with a showroom area underneath. We were then given a brief overview of Bugatti's history and the philosophy behind the Veyron and then they bring the demo Veyron round. Now the best bit. We were each to be given a test drive that would last around 40 minutes. Geoff went first. Geoff's a great guy (Jimmy Saville) look alike and is passionate about cars and is madly in love with his Ferrari F50. I nearly fell of my chair later that night when Jill his wife told me and Kerry he was 68.
Whilst Geoff was out in the Veyron we then were given a guided tour of the restored Bugatti Chateau and then over to the factory where they assemble the Veyron. The components of the car are supplied in built up form so that they basically have to bolt all the right bits together. The engine and gearbox assembly is delivered as a pre-assembled unit, 8 litre V16 with 4 turbochargers. None of us could get over how big the engine gearbox assembly was. It is absolutely monstrous.
We then wandered back to the showroom area where food and refreshment was laid on. Obviously non alcoholic. Geoff came back and Simon then went out in the car. After Simon it was my turn. Chris had already driven the car for a couple of hours in London so was happy to go last. So at around 2.30pm I had the opportunity to park my backside in the passenger seat of a Bugatti Veyron driven by a competent race driver of some 20 years experience by the name of Olivier. He'd won the French GT championship for the past 2 years running in a Dodge Viper.
So how does the following performance figures translate into the actual driving of the car. 0-62 in 2.5 seconds, 0-125mph in 7.3, 0-186 in 16.7. From flat out at 252mph she can stop in under 10 seconds in 400 metres. (f'ing hell). Olivier drove first explaining the capabilities of the car, the 400watt stereo, how the gearchange works. The Veyron runs a 7 speed DSG gearbox with two clutch assemblies. In simple terms the electronics work out what gear you will select next. So say you are accelerating in second, third gear is already spinning waiting for the change. This translates into an impercetable gearchange. Whilst tootling down the road listening to what Olivier had to say we had gone from 1st to 7th and you would not realise the car had changed gear. So he took me on a mixture of 'b' road, 'a' road, cobbled streets through a town, motorway. At around 150mph he took both hands off the wheel and stood on the brakes and you just hung in the seat belt almost like in mid air as the car pulled up arrow straight. The acceleration is just ferocious and seemingless. It runs 1.7 bar on overboost which is pretty high, the grip level is just phenominal and as Olivier did whilst barrelling down a 360 degree right hander from an 'a' road to motorway he came completely off the throttle and the back end did not move an inch. We then drove into a small supermarket area and it was my turn to drive. The most imposing thing about the car when you get behind the wheel is the fact that the front end disappears from view but more so the very high door panels and wing mirror that obscure you view on the nearside. When say you are negotiating a roundabout you have to look over the door panel and down to get an idea whether or not you are about to drive over the roundabout or around it. Initially it is a bit of a pain as I don't want to clout the wheels but once you get a handle on the width of the car like driving anything you get used to it.
So we tootle through a town and down some 'b' roads. The point they are making is that this is the most completely useable supercar that money can buy. It is as happy crawling in traffic as barrellng down a motorway. We clear the town and we are now on a 'b' road one car in front, nothing coming the other way and I nail it. F**k me the acceleration is awesome. The road is slightly bumpy and undulating but the car does not brake an ounce of traction and just keeps on relentlessly pushing, firm push on the brake pedal and your back to normal speeds in a second. The steering is communicative and gives plenty of feed back. On these slighly rutted 'b' roads she will track a little bit but nothing that is not easy to correct. We then wind our way onto a motorway section. We join the motorway, nothing coming, nothing in front for a little way and nail it, The power gauge hits 1001ps and i'm pulling on the paddle shift and within seconds we are realling in cars that were once on the horizon. Again firm push on the brakes, no fuss, no bother and you are back to sane speeds. Now I have never driven at 200mph. I have hit 180's in the Porsche, raced at Daytona in the 24 hour making 175mph lap after lap down the front straight but I have never hit the double ton. I know that some of you may lambast me for this but in truth I cannot care. I waited for a couple of cars to move over and again a gap had opened up in the traffic. Now let me explain my driving style. As you know the french motorways all tend to be dual carriageway. If I am overtaking cars or lorries in the slow lane then I am driving at around 90mph or slower particularly if there is a bunch of lorries together. I am not stupid. But the opportunity presented itself to nail the Veyron and keep it nailed. This car gathers so much speed in such a very short space of time you would not believe it to be possible. The sense of speed is evident, the steering is beautifully weighted and the car feels like it is on your own personal railway track. Were approaching a left hand bend, there's something black lying in the road (a wrag), The speedo is pulling up to 300kmh, a slight correction on the wheel to miss the rag just in case, exit the bend still nailed, we approaching a silver mondeo very, very, very quickly, quick glance at the speedo were one notch past 300 kmh, firm on the brakes and were back down to mondeo speed at 120kmh. Another glance at the speedo, one notch past was 330kmh (206.25mph). I am no longer a virgin. We return to the factory and as we drive into the entrance Olivier says stop the car. Now nail it first and second and then hit the brakes before the barrier (it was open). I said what just stomp on the throttle. Yes. fair enough. A millisecond of nothing and then you are launched at ludicrous speed, 1st 2nd bang on the brakes. The chap on the security gate was laughing and we tootle back around to the showroom. I stop outside and the guys and girls are there to greet me. I open the door and I get the collective well. My reply, two words, f**king and awesome. Si shouts how fast, my reply 330 kmh, his reply, you had it nailed, yes wherever possible, you f**cking wa**er if anyone was going too I knew you would. The staff start to clap and Olivier shakes my hand and I thank him for the opprtunity to drive. Just to make it clear not one time did I have that heart in the mouth moment or oops I think I'm in big trouble, thats how good the car is. Chris then went out in the Veyron followed by the girls who where given 15 minute rides each but were not allowed to drive. Olivier asked would I buy one, my reply, well when you take Kerry in the car the one with the blonde curly hair she's the one you have to presuade, not me. After Chris went Jill, then Alys, Kerry and Kate. Was Kerry impressed, completely but she knew not to show too much exuberance or she would be risking me doing something incredibly stupid. Whilst Olivier was driving he says to her have you been in many sports cars before, (I guess he forgot that she's my other half), she says oh yes, many times, Graeme the tall guy with the curly hair is my other half. He looked at her, put his hands up in the air, nodded and laughed. He said to her that the fastest that he had driven the Veyron was 300 kmh. She replied put your bloody hands back on the wheel. We then asked if the girls could drive. Alys was the only one brave enough. As the day was drawing on the traffic was getting heavier but Alys still managed to hit 150's, I could not persuade Kerry to have a go, even pootling around the car park, she did not want to run the risk of doing something stupid. Our hosts thanked us for being the most enjoyable bunch of prospective clients that they had has so far met. They were amazed that we had brought are partners with us and amazed that we were all such petrol heads. I guess that they very often have to deal with very wealthy people that can be very arrogant to put it mildly and I guess it was a refreshing change to meet just a nice bunch of people. At the end of he day they know Chris is buying a Veyron but they have no idea as to the rest of our financial situations. I think this is why they felt comfortable in letting the girls drive if they wanted to. We had to sign a disclaimer before driving the car. Olivier said do you want to read it. I replied , two questions, 1) am I placing an order and 2) do I have to pay for any damage. He said no, then I don't have to read it then.
We were then taken to our hotel, we had a lovely meal, plenty to drink and we all chatted to about 2 in the morning. Breakfast at 9 and then a coach back to the airport and jet home. The 4 bottles of bubbly on the jet were consumed (not by me) and I dropped simon and alys back home and we shot off and had lunch. What an absolutely fantastic once in a lifetime experience we all had. Kerry said that it was one of the most memorable days of her life. Unless someone can prove otherwise we are all a long time dead. Kate was still a bit shaken from the accident on M1 the night before with the thought that if Chris had avaraged say 1mph faster on the way down they might have been amongst the 7 dead on the M1. That is why I believe you should grab as much of life as you can with both hands as you never know when it might be taken away from you. Thank you for reading this post and I hope you enjoy. I'll add and remove piccies from time to time. Yours smiling for at least the whole of next week, Graeme.
So we flew out on a privately hired citation jet to a smallish airport just outside Molsheim in France about an hour and 15 minutes. We were met buy a guy from the factory and John Morrison from Jack Barclay UK. I'd seen John before around race circuits but never really been introduced. He's been racing for 34 years, raced at Le Mans, Daytona etc. you could say he's been around a bit. So were driven to the factory not far away in a couple of mini buses. We are then met and taken into their office area with a showroom area underneath. We were then given a brief overview of Bugatti's history and the philosophy behind the Veyron and then they bring the demo Veyron round. Now the best bit. We were each to be given a test drive that would last around 40 minutes. Geoff went first. Geoff's a great guy (Jimmy Saville) look alike and is passionate about cars and is madly in love with his Ferrari F50. I nearly fell of my chair later that night when Jill his wife told me and Kerry he was 68.
Whilst Geoff was out in the Veyron we then were given a guided tour of the restored Bugatti Chateau and then over to the factory where they assemble the Veyron. The components of the car are supplied in built up form so that they basically have to bolt all the right bits together. The engine and gearbox assembly is delivered as a pre-assembled unit, 8 litre V16 with 4 turbochargers. None of us could get over how big the engine gearbox assembly was. It is absolutely monstrous.
We then wandered back to the showroom area where food and refreshment was laid on. Obviously non alcoholic. Geoff came back and Simon then went out in the car. After Simon it was my turn. Chris had already driven the car for a couple of hours in London so was happy to go last. So at around 2.30pm I had the opportunity to park my backside in the passenger seat of a Bugatti Veyron driven by a competent race driver of some 20 years experience by the name of Olivier. He'd won the French GT championship for the past 2 years running in a Dodge Viper.
So how does the following performance figures translate into the actual driving of the car. 0-62 in 2.5 seconds, 0-125mph in 7.3, 0-186 in 16.7. From flat out at 252mph she can stop in under 10 seconds in 400 metres. (f'ing hell). Olivier drove first explaining the capabilities of the car, the 400watt stereo, how the gearchange works. The Veyron runs a 7 speed DSG gearbox with two clutch assemblies. In simple terms the electronics work out what gear you will select next. So say you are accelerating in second, third gear is already spinning waiting for the change. This translates into an impercetable gearchange. Whilst tootling down the road listening to what Olivier had to say we had gone from 1st to 7th and you would not realise the car had changed gear. So he took me on a mixture of 'b' road, 'a' road, cobbled streets through a town, motorway. At around 150mph he took both hands off the wheel and stood on the brakes and you just hung in the seat belt almost like in mid air as the car pulled up arrow straight. The acceleration is just ferocious and seemingless. It runs 1.7 bar on overboost which is pretty high, the grip level is just phenominal and as Olivier did whilst barrelling down a 360 degree right hander from an 'a' road to motorway he came completely off the throttle and the back end did not move an inch. We then drove into a small supermarket area and it was my turn to drive. The most imposing thing about the car when you get behind the wheel is the fact that the front end disappears from view but more so the very high door panels and wing mirror that obscure you view on the nearside. When say you are negotiating a roundabout you have to look over the door panel and down to get an idea whether or not you are about to drive over the roundabout or around it. Initially it is a bit of a pain as I don't want to clout the wheels but once you get a handle on the width of the car like driving anything you get used to it.
So we tootle through a town and down some 'b' roads. The point they are making is that this is the most completely useable supercar that money can buy. It is as happy crawling in traffic as barrellng down a motorway. We clear the town and we are now on a 'b' road one car in front, nothing coming the other way and I nail it. F**k me the acceleration is awesome. The road is slightly bumpy and undulating but the car does not brake an ounce of traction and just keeps on relentlessly pushing, firm push on the brake pedal and your back to normal speeds in a second. The steering is communicative and gives plenty of feed back. On these slighly rutted 'b' roads she will track a little bit but nothing that is not easy to correct. We then wind our way onto a motorway section. We join the motorway, nothing coming, nothing in front for a little way and nail it, The power gauge hits 1001ps and i'm pulling on the paddle shift and within seconds we are realling in cars that were once on the horizon. Again firm push on the brakes, no fuss, no bother and you are back to sane speeds. Now I have never driven at 200mph. I have hit 180's in the Porsche, raced at Daytona in the 24 hour making 175mph lap after lap down the front straight but I have never hit the double ton. I know that some of you may lambast me for this but in truth I cannot care. I waited for a couple of cars to move over and again a gap had opened up in the traffic. Now let me explain my driving style. As you know the french motorways all tend to be dual carriageway. If I am overtaking cars or lorries in the slow lane then I am driving at around 90mph or slower particularly if there is a bunch of lorries together. I am not stupid. But the opportunity presented itself to nail the Veyron and keep it nailed. This car gathers so much speed in such a very short space of time you would not believe it to be possible. The sense of speed is evident, the steering is beautifully weighted and the car feels like it is on your own personal railway track. Were approaching a left hand bend, there's something black lying in the road (a wrag), The speedo is pulling up to 300kmh, a slight correction on the wheel to miss the rag just in case, exit the bend still nailed, we approaching a silver mondeo very, very, very quickly, quick glance at the speedo were one notch past 300 kmh, firm on the brakes and were back down to mondeo speed at 120kmh. Another glance at the speedo, one notch past was 330kmh (206.25mph). I am no longer a virgin. We return to the factory and as we drive into the entrance Olivier says stop the car. Now nail it first and second and then hit the brakes before the barrier (it was open). I said what just stomp on the throttle. Yes. fair enough. A millisecond of nothing and then you are launched at ludicrous speed, 1st 2nd bang on the brakes. The chap on the security gate was laughing and we tootle back around to the showroom. I stop outside and the guys and girls are there to greet me. I open the door and I get the collective well. My reply, two words, f**king and awesome. Si shouts how fast, my reply 330 kmh, his reply, you had it nailed, yes wherever possible, you f**cking wa**er if anyone was going too I knew you would. The staff start to clap and Olivier shakes my hand and I thank him for the opprtunity to drive. Just to make it clear not one time did I have that heart in the mouth moment or oops I think I'm in big trouble, thats how good the car is. Chris then went out in the Veyron followed by the girls who where given 15 minute rides each but were not allowed to drive. Olivier asked would I buy one, my reply, well when you take Kerry in the car the one with the blonde curly hair she's the one you have to presuade, not me. After Chris went Jill, then Alys, Kerry and Kate. Was Kerry impressed, completely but she knew not to show too much exuberance or she would be risking me doing something incredibly stupid. Whilst Olivier was driving he says to her have you been in many sports cars before, (I guess he forgot that she's my other half), she says oh yes, many times, Graeme the tall guy with the curly hair is my other half. He looked at her, put his hands up in the air, nodded and laughed. He said to her that the fastest that he had driven the Veyron was 300 kmh. She replied put your bloody hands back on the wheel. We then asked if the girls could drive. Alys was the only one brave enough. As the day was drawing on the traffic was getting heavier but Alys still managed to hit 150's, I could not persuade Kerry to have a go, even pootling around the car park, she did not want to run the risk of doing something stupid. Our hosts thanked us for being the most enjoyable bunch of prospective clients that they had has so far met. They were amazed that we had brought are partners with us and amazed that we were all such petrol heads. I guess that they very often have to deal with very wealthy people that can be very arrogant to put it mildly and I guess it was a refreshing change to meet just a nice bunch of people. At the end of he day they know Chris is buying a Veyron but they have no idea as to the rest of our financial situations. I think this is why they felt comfortable in letting the girls drive if they wanted to. We had to sign a disclaimer before driving the car. Olivier said do you want to read it. I replied , two questions, 1) am I placing an order and 2) do I have to pay for any damage. He said no, then I don't have to read it then.
We were then taken to our hotel, we had a lovely meal, plenty to drink and we all chatted to about 2 in the morning. Breakfast at 9 and then a coach back to the airport and jet home. The 4 bottles of bubbly on the jet were consumed (not by me) and I dropped simon and alys back home and we shot off and had lunch. What an absolutely fantastic once in a lifetime experience we all had. Kerry said that it was one of the most memorable days of her life. Unless someone can prove otherwise we are all a long time dead. Kate was still a bit shaken from the accident on M1 the night before with the thought that if Chris had avaraged say 1mph faster on the way down they might have been amongst the 7 dead on the M1. That is why I believe you should grab as much of life as you can with both hands as you never know when it might be taken away from you. Thank you for reading this post and I hope you enjoy. I'll add and remove piccies from time to time. Yours smiling for at least the whole of next week, Graeme.
Edited by graeme73s on Sunday 12th November 10:10
Edited by graeme73s on Sunday 12th November 10:10
Marvellous 
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