Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport revealed

Bugatti has confirmed that it will build 150 of the new Veyron Grand Sports after the open-top version of the world's fastest car was launched at the Pebble Beach Concours.

Rumours of an open-topped Veyron had been around since the car's introduction, but the Grand Sport was only confirmed for production last year. It will take total Veyron production up to 450 cars by 2011, breaking the company's earlier commitment to build no more than 300 Veyrons.

Like the Veyron 16.4 coupe, the Grand Sport is all about superlatives. Its top speed remains unchanged at 253mph, but the bodywork has been revised to allow high-speed driving with the roof down.

The biggest single difference is that the roof has been set higher to reduce wind intrusion into the cabin, with substantial reinforcement to the Veyron's inner structure to compensate for the structural loss of the open roof. Sills and transmission tunnel have all been beefed up, while the B-pillars are braced with a new carbonfibre strut, and the carbonfibre doors have been strengthened with a side impact bar.

For roll-over protection, the Veyron coupe’s distinctive air intakes are re-designed to include 100mm wide carbon-fibre tubes to protect occupants. Although it’s capable of more, Bugatti advise the drop-top Veyron isn’t taken over 233mph. It will cost a cool £1.14 million before taxes - around £150k more than a Veyron.

Julian Rendell