[Cartoday]
Bugatti has been threatening to lop the roof off its Veyron for some time now, and it looks as though we’re just two weeks away from seeing this incredibly exclusive car at the upcoming Pebble Beach Concourse d’Elegance in California.
Dubbed the ‘Veyron Grand Sport’, this model ushers in a targa-esque removable roof section, as well as a number of additional features unique to this particular model. Among these extras are a number of structural changes that the company claims will give the Grand Sport performance and passive safety levels matching those of the hard-topped Veyron.
The Grand Sport will feature the standard car’s quad turbo 8,0-litre W16 engine. Developing 746 kW, this unit will catapult the open-topped car from standstill to 100 km/h in just 2,5 seconds and on to a top speed of 406 km/h.
Bugatti’s communication chief, Georges Keller, has cited the natures of the car’s safety cage as the primary reason for adopting a targa roof. Such an option is also fairly cost effective, helps to retain the original car’s structural rigidity and is more likely to stand up to the punishment of tackling more than 400 km/h than a canvas roof.
Those opting for a Grand Sport had also invest some time in studying the weather reports closely (or buy a sizable house somewhere dry and sunny), because the roof, whilst removable, cannot be stored on board the car.Bugatti has not yet specified how many units will be made, but production has been penciled in for the first half of 2009.