Adding its name to the stone etched with the greatest and fastest cars is the Bugatti Mistral. Along with the Veyron 16.4 Super Sport, Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse, and Chiron Super Sport 300+, the Mistral hit a record speed of 282.04 mph (453.91 km/h). Nearly three hundred miles per hour without a roof!
The record-breaking top-speed run was conducted at the ATP Automotive Testing Papenburg GmbH, Germany, on November 9th. Prior Bugatti’s had broken records at this same facility, with the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse reaching 254.04 mph (408.84 km/h) without a roof. Bugatti Rimac CEO Mate Rimac was in attendance with the senior management team for the Mistral’s speed run.
Piloted by prior Lemans 24 Hour winner Andy Wallace, the W16 Mistral went through a warmup run and proceeded to reach 124 mph (~200 km/h) in the banked curves prior to a full throttle top speed run.
Andy said, “Throughout the testing program leading up to this moment, it was incredible to feel how stable the car felt—I got the sense that it wanted to go faster… And when it came to the moment itself, the experience was overwhelmingly thrilling; feeling the elemental forces from the open-top cockpit, the sound of the immense W16 engine emanating from the air scoops next to my ear—it made the achievement incredibly emotional. A record like this pushes the boundaries of the automotive innovation and requires the immense focus, dedication, and teamwork to realize. It’s a true testament to the passion that everyone at Bugatti has for making history.”
Making matters even more important for the run, the customer buying the car was on hand! The customer of this world record car will be taking it back to Punjab, India and will be part of The Singh Collection.
Cheers!
M. T. Blake
