Bugatti Veyron (06 on) - Review Review by Simon Harris on 09 January 2008 Last Updated: 16 January 2009 One man's hugely expensive folly or an engineering triumph? Dreamt up by Volkswagen's then chairman Dr Ferdinand Piech, he decided the recently purchased Bugatti brand needed a flagship supercar. He announced that the new car would achieve some startling numbers. A top speed in excess of 400km/h (250mph) and over 1000bhp was promised, VW's best engineers then given the task of achieving those lofty goals. Its conception might have proved troublesome, and cost VW countless millions but the engineers achieved what many thought impossible - the Veyron 16.4 arriving, late, in 2005. It really is a moonshot car, a Concorde moment in the automotive world, its 253mph top speed and 16-cylinder, quad-turbo engine massive 1000bhp-plus output still difficult to comprehend. 4.5 out of 5 Other Bugatti reviews Summary Driving & Performance Comfort Costs Safety & Reliability Buying & Selling Gallery 4.5 out of 5 Summary Tweet Next steps Ludicrous performance yet easy to drive, super exclusive, hugely luxurious, an engineering masterpiece Heinously expensive and impractical, horrific fuel consumption, hugely complex to service One man's hugely expensive folly or an engineering triumph? Dreamt up by Volkswagen's then chairman Dr Ferdinand Piech, he decided the recently purchased Bugatti brand needed a flagship supercar. He announced that the new car would achieve some startling numbers. A top speed in excess of 400km/h (250mph) and over 1000bhp was promised, VW's best engineers then given the task of achieving those lofty goals. Its conception might have proved troublesome, and cost VW countless millions but the engineers achieved what many thought impossible - the Veyron 16.4 arriving, late, in 2005. It really is a moonshot car, a Concorde moment in the automotive world, its 253mph top speed and 16-cylinder, quad-turbo engine massive 1000bhp-plus output still difficult to comprehend. Driving & Performance Performance 5 out of 5"Say Veyron and people immediately throw back its 253mph capability and 1000bhp-plus output. However,..." Handling 4 out of 5"Brutish power might be the Veyron's party trick, but there's more to it than time-bending pace." Comfort Comfort 4 out of 5"Supercars should be recalcitrant, noisy and a bit frightening. That's simply not the case with the..." Practicality 1.5 out of 5"Nobody buys a Veyron with practicality in mind. Which is just as well. There's very little luggage..." Equipment 4 out of 5"The Veyron comes with everything you'd expect in a supercar, though there's no standard sat-nav..." Behind the wheel 2.5 out of 5"Perhaps the most obvious pointer to the Veyron's mammoth performance, besides the instruments..." Costs Running costs 0.5 out of 5"With a sticker price to rival a lovely house a few cars and a boat the Veyron isn't a purchase made..." Green credentials 0.5 out of 5"Low marks here - an 8.0-litre, 16-cylinder engine is never going to win over the environmental..." Safety & Reliability Safety 4 out of 5"The Veyron might be a ludicrously fast supercar but it's built to the Volkswagen group standards for..." Reliability 4 out of 5"Bugatti bucks convention with the Veyron, its Volkswagen Group parentage meaning although only being..." Buying & Selling Buying new 1 out of 5"If you have the kind of money that allows you to buy a Veyron, then the price won't matter. Find..." Buying used 1.5 out of 5"Rarity value will probably keep used prices high, even if the first owner loses hundreds of..." Selling 2.5 out of 5"The Veyron has many reasons why collectors or the well-heeled would buy one: it's capable of 250mph,..." Gallery View full gallery Car Valuations Find used car prices with Parkers accurate car valuations. Find out more Cars for Sale Search well over a hundred thousand new and used cars for sale across the UK. Find out more Next: Driving & Performance