Bugatti Veyron Black Bess, 2014
With its fifth model in the six-part "Les Légendes de Bugatti" (Bugatti Legends) Edition, Bugatti has revived the legendary Type 18 "Black Bess", which went down in automotive history as one of the first ever street legal super sports cars. At the 2014 Auto China motor show in Beijing the French luxury manufacturer will be presenting as a world premiere the modern interpretation of the Type 18, the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse "Black Bess". As one of the fastest road vehicles in the world at the time, the Type 18 "Black Bess" is a direct forerunner of today's world speed record-holding Bugatti Veyron. As with all models in the Edition, the current Legends model is limited to a run of three vehicles and is available for a net price of € 2.15 million. Of the four Legend models already presented, all twelve vehicles have been sold.
The Type 18 was one of the most important Bugattis of the pre-war era, both ahead of its time and in a league of its own thanks to its impressive technical features. With a 4-cylinder in-line engine and five litre capacity, the vehicle was capable of producing over 100 PS. With a top speed of 160 km/h (100 mph), a feat deemed virtually unbelievable for the times, the Type 18 was a true racing thoroughbred and the fastest road vehicle around.
The Type 18 was driven in races by company founder Ettore Bugatti himself; indeed he secured a win in his class in the important 1912 Mont Ventoux hill climb. Bugatti limited the production run for this model to just seven vehicles and sold them to an extremely select group of customers. One of these customers was the famed and celebrated French aviation pioneer Roland Garros, who successfully crossed the Mediterranean in an airplane in 1912 after racking up a host of successes at a variety of aviation events. It was Ettore's victory at Mont Ventoux which drew Garros' attention to the Type 18. A lover of speed through and through, Garros was looking for a car which would enable him to travel as fast on land as he could in the air. The Type 18 was an obvious choice. In counting Garros amongst his customers, Ettore Bugatti had landed a major marketing coup.
The Bugatti delivered the two-seater bearing the vehicle identification number 474 to Garros on 18 September 1913. This Type 18, later named after the English racehorse "Black Bess", is one of only three of the seven vehicles still remaining. Today, it can be found in the Louwman Museum, a private collection on show at The Hague in the Netherlands. Evert Louwman has kindly made the historic Type 18 "Black Bess" specially available for the world premiere of the current "Black Bess" Legend Vitesse at the 2014 Auto China in Beijing.
As is the case with all of the Legend vehicles, the "Black Bess" is based on the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse. Its 1,200 PS, 8 litre W16 engine achieves an unparalleled torque of 1,500 Nm at 3,000-5,000 rpm, and can accelerate from 0-100 km in 2.6 seconds. With a maximum speed of 408.84 km/h with the roof down, the Vitesse is the fastest production roadster ever built.
Design - high-quality materials used for the exterior, and international debut of innovative interior detailing
The Exterior
The body of the "Black Bess" Vitesse is constructed entirely of carbon fibre and, just like its historical predecessor, is painted completely black. The gold-coloured accents that make the Type 18 "Black Bess" so unmistakable are reflected in exquisite fashion on the modern Bugatti. For example, some of the Bugatti's body components are coated in 24-carat gold. Indeed, this precious material has been used for the striking Bugatti horseshoe, which gleams against the background of the black front grille, creating a truly expressive front view for the Vitesse. This is reinforced by gold-coloured stripes that start below the headlights and radiate out over the front wings towards the rear, before tapering off at the end of the door line.
Sporting a similarly brilliant gold finish are the EB logo on the rear of the vehicle and the hub covers on the black rims, which also bear the initials of the company's founder, Ettore Bugatti, in black. And let's not forget the tank and oil caps, which have been engraved with the "Black Bess" nameplate and elegantly finished with gold paint.
The Interior
The interior of the "Black Bess" Legend Vitesse has been fully upholstered using the finest leather. The headliner, footwell, seats, elongated centre console and rear bulkhead are bedecked in a light "Beige" tone, with the dashboard, dash panel, door trim panel and cowl panel offering a discreet contrast in "Havanna". Clad in red "Crimson" leather, the steering wheel rim draws a clear reference to the historic Type 18 "Black Bess". This accent has also been picked up and continued in the red decorative stitching on the outer bolsters of the seats and in the seat belts.
