Bugatti looks back on the Veyron: From dream to reality

Bugatti is looking back on its groundbreaking Veyron hypercar, two decades after the car was first unveiled.

In 1997, inspired by a desire to create an automobile of unprecedented power and refinement, then Volkswagen Group Chairman Ferdinand Piech envisioned a revolutionary 18-cylinder engine during a Shinkansen train journey in Japan.

Presented as an elegant, imposing two-door coupe, the EB 118 concept car captured the essence of a grand tourer

Sketched on an envelope, this W18 configuration became the conceptual heart of Bugatti's resurgence after Volkswagen AG acquired the brand rights in May 1998.

Seeking a car capable of exceeding 400km/h whilst offering comfort and elegance, Piech sought Italdesign's Giorgetto Giugiaro to deliver a new vehicle concept, resulting in the EB 118 - a two-door, four-wheel drive coupe - debuting at the 1998 Paris Motor Show. The concept car was defined by its long, sweeping bonnet necessitated by the size of its 6.3-litre W18 engine delivering 547bhp.

Following swiftly, the EB 218 luxury saloon debuted at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show. Longer than the EB 118, it featured subtly revised curvatures for the bumpers, lights, and bonnet, adapting the W18's packaging requirements to a saloon format while retaining permanent all-wheel drive.

The EB 18/3 Chiron's styling became more focused on aerodynamic efficiency and dynamic prowess

A significant shift in direction occurred later that year with the presentation of the EB 18/3 Chiron at the 1999 IAA in Frankfurt. As a pure, two-seater super sports car with the W18 positioned in a mid-engine layout, this resulted in a more aggressive, cab-forward stance typical of high-performance sports cars.

A month later in October 1999, Bugatti unveiled the EB 18/4 Veyron concept car, named after Pierre Veyron, who used to be the marque's race and test driver, as well as development engineer.

This presented a much more compact and focused mid-engine sports car silhouette, which also brought about the challenge of obtaining over 986bhp whilst managing the heat and complexity of the W18, ultimately leading to a pivotal engineering shift. By 2000, the decision was made to develop a new engine: The 8.0-litre W16.

The journey from Piech's initial W18 sketch to the world-beating Veyron 16.4 was a testament to relentless innovation, iterative design, and a deep respect for Bugatti's heritage

Thus, the concept cars were not simply mere design exercises but crucial stepping stones. Each explored different styling directions, testing the limits of the W18 engine, before the engineering shift to the W16 powerplant defined the Veyron 16.4, which was unveiled in 2005.

Standing as a monument to this legacy, the hyper sports car was born from an audacious vision that redefined the boundaries of possibility.