In May 1998, Volkswagen AG acquired the rights to use the Bugatti logo and the trade name Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. To succeed the EB 110 model produced under the previous ownership, the automaker quickly released a series of concept cars whose technological advancements would culminate in the form of the Veyron 16.4.

Between October 1998 and September 1999, Bugatti introduced a series of Giugiaro-designed concept vehicles, each with permanent four-wheel drive and powered by the Volkswagen-designed W18 engine. The first car, the EB 118, was a 2-door luxury coupé presented at the 1998 Paris Motor Show. The next car, the EB 218, was a 4-door saloon presented at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show. The third and final car, the 18/3 Chiron, was a mid-engine sports car presented at the 1999 International Motor Show in Frankfurt.

In October 1999, Bugatti unveiled a fourth concept car at the Tokyo Motor Show. The EB 18/4 Veyron was a mid-engine sports car styled in-house under the direction of Hartmut Warkuß. In 2000, a modified version, the EB 16/4 Veyron, was displayed at motor shows in Detroit, Geneva, and Paris. Rather than the three-bank W18 engine of the four previous concept cars, the EB 16/4 featured the four-bank WR16 engine architecture installed in every production example of the Veyron. Warkuß also commissioned SEAT head of design, Walter de Silva, to submit a design proposal for the new Bugatti. The design was ultimately rejected in favour of Warkuß's own proposal.

The decision to start production of the car was made by the Volkswagen Group in 2001. The first roadworthy prototype was completed in August 2003. It is identical to the later series variant, except for a few details. In the transition from development to series production, considerable technical problems had to be addressed, repeatedly delaying production until September 2005.

The Veyron EB 16.4 is named in honor of Pierre Veyron, a Bugatti development engineer, test driver and company race driver who, with co-driver Jean-Pierre Wimille, won the 1939 24 Hours of Le Mans while driving a Bugatti. The "EB" refers to Bugatti founder Ettore Bugatti and the "16.4" refers to the engine's 16 cylinders and quad-turbochargers.

The Veyron features an 8.0-litre, quad-turbocharged, W16 cylinder engine, equivalent to two narrow-angle V8 engines bolted together. Each cylinder has four valves for a total of 64, but the configuration of each bank allows two overhead camshafts to drive two banks of cylinders so only four camshafts are needed. The engine is fed by four turbochargers and displaces 7,993 cc (487.8 cu in), with a square 86 by 86 mm (3.39 by 3.39 in) bore and stroke.

The transmission is a dual-clutch direct-shift computer-controlled automatic transmission having seven gear ratios, with magnesium paddles behind the steering wheel and a shift time of less than 150 milliseconds, built by Ricardo of England rather than Borg-Warner, who designed the six speed DSG used in the mainstream Volkswagen Group marques. The Veyron can be driven in either semi-automatic or fully-automatic mode. A replacement transmission for the Veyron costs just over US$120,000. It also has permanent all-wheel drive using the Haldex Traction system. It uses special Michelin PAX run-flat tyres, designed specifically to accommodate the Veyron's top speed, and cost US$25,000 per set. The tyres can be mounted on the wheels only in France, a service which costs US$70,000. Kerb weight is 1,888 kg (4,162 lb). This gives the car a power-to-weight ratio, according to Volkswagen Group's figures, of 530 PS (390 kW; 523 hp) per ton. The car's wheelbase is 2,710 mm (106.7 in). Overall length is 4,462 mm (175.7 in) which gives 1,752.6 mm (69.0 in) of overhang. The width is 1,998 mm (78.7 in) and height 1,204 mm (47.4 in). The Bugatti Veyron has a total of ten radiators:
• 3 heat exchangers for the air-to-liquid intercoolers.
• 3 engine radiators.
• 1 for the air conditioning system.
• 1 transmission oil radiator.
• 1 differential oil radiator.
• 1 engine oil radiator
It has a drag coefficient of Cd=0.41 (normal condition) and Cd=0.36 (after lowering to the ground), and a frontal area of 2.07 m (22.3 sq ft). This gives it a drag area, the product of drag coefficient and frontal area, of CdA=0.74 m (8.0 sq ft).
According to Volkswagen Group and certified by TÜV Süddeutschland, the W16 engine utilised by the Veyron has a power output of 736 kW (987 hp; 1,001 PS), and generates 1,250 N⋅m (922 lbf⋅ft) of torque.
German inspection officials recorded an average top speed of the original version at 408.47 km/h (253.81 mph) during test sessions on Volkswagen Group's private Ehra-Lessien test track on 19 April 2005.

This top speed was almost matched by

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The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport is a faster, more powerful version of the Bugatti Veyron 16.4. Production was limited to 48 units. The Super Sport has increased engine power output of 1,200 PS (882 kW; 1,183 hp) at 6,400 rpm and a maximum torque of 1,500 N⋅m (1,106 lb⋅ft) at 3,000–5,000 rpm and a revised aerodynamic package. The Super Sport has been driven as fast as 431.072 km/h (267.856 mph), making it the fastest production road car in the world at the time of its introduction although it is electronically limited to 415 km/h (258 mph) to protect the tyres from disintegrating.

The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport World Record Edition is a version of the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport. It is limited to five units. It has an orange body detailing, orange wheels, and a special black exposed carbon body. The electronic limiter is also removed with this version.

The model was unveiled in 2010 at The Quail, followed by the 2010 Monterey Historic Races at Laguna Seca, and the 2010 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.
On 4 July 2010, James May, a television presenter on BBC Two's television show Top Gear, drove the Veyron Super Sport on Volkswagen's Ehra-Lessien (near Wolfsburg, Germany) high-speed test track at 417.61 km/h (259.49 mph). Later that day, Bugatti's official test driver Pierre Henri Raphanel drove the Super Sport version of the Veyron at the same track to establish the car's top speed. With representatives of the Guinness Book of Records and German Technical Inspection Agency (TÜV) on hand, Raphanel made passes around the big oval in both directions achieving an average maximum speed of 431.072 km/h (267.856 mph), thus taking back the title from the SSC Ultimate Aero TT as the fastest production vehicle of all time. The 431.072 km/h (267.856 mph) mark was reached by averaging the Super Sport's two test runs, the first reaching 427.933 km/h (265.905 mph) and the second 434.211 km/h (269.806 mph).

When the record was certified it was already well known to the public that the customer car would be electronically limited to 415 km/h (258 mph). Yet, after a query by the Sunday Times Guinness' PR director Jaime Strang was quoted on 5 April 2013: "As the car's speed limiter was deactivated, this modification was against the official guidelines. Consequently, the vehicle's record set at 431.072 km/h is no longer valid." On 10 April 2013, it was written on its website: "Guinness World Records would like to confirm that Bugatti's record has not been disqualified; the record category is currently under review."

On 15 April 2013, Bugatti's speed record was confirmed: "Following a thorough review conducted with a number of ext…

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