Quote:
Excerpt from Motor Trend 12.01.2003 written by Karl Ludvigsen
...A different, but no less enthusiastic, crowd saw a Veyron in action at the Monterey Historic Races in August. A lurid on-track spin that nearly cost the company one of its prototypes really got everyone's attention..
That 252 mph isn't quite ready for delivery, says a source close to the car's development. It's stable up to 200 mph, with its automatic rear-wing extension, but it needs some work above that. Nor is the complicated driveline ready: The engine's 920 pound-feet of torque are tearing up its transmission's gears, creating what one engineer calls "tooth salad." Michelin hasn't completed development of its critical PAX-system run-flat tires. But VW's Audi Group has the resources to solve these problems...
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Note the date of the following article is August of 2003.
Quote:
Article taken from Autoweek(16:04 Aug. 19, 2003)
Bugatti's president to exit in wake of continued Veyron delays
By GREG KABLE
Storm clouds are gathering over the Bugatti EB16.4 Veyron. Word out of Germany is that Bugatti president Karl-Heinz Neumann has received his walking papers from parent company Volkswagen's chairman Bernd Pischetsreider as a consequence of the supercar's launch delay.
Originally due to go into limited production earlier this year, the Veyron now appears unlikely to reach customers until this time next year -- some 12 months behind schedule. Nothing's official just yet, though Volkswagen sources say moves are already afoot to replace Neumann, who has headed Bugatti since plans for the Veyron were first announced in 2000.
German press reports suggest Bentley and Volkswagen Motorsport boss, Franz-Josef Paefgen, may be brought in to steer the new car's final development, although an official announcement is unlikely to be made until the Frankfurt motor show in early September. Problems with the reliability of the Veyron's complex 8.0-litre, W-16 engine and seven-speed gearbox are said to be behind the launch delay.
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Bugatti was aware of stability problems months before Bscher was hired. The car's production debut was already significantly delayed and it is likely that VW couldn't come up with a solution for the Veyron's instability among other issues. They could waste several more months--or even years--trying to solve something that might be unsolvable and further delay the car, or reduce the top speed and perhaps have it ready for the public some time relatively soon.
It's pretty easy to see what the smart solution would be in this situation.
Greg A