Everyone knows that the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport holds the current land speed record for a production car with an outrageous speed of 267.86 mph. With the Chiron about to hit the market, everyone is wondering if it will be a worthy successor to the Veyron and top that record breaking speed. Bugatti believes it can, however, it has told Motor Authority that the Chiron’s top speed will be limited to 261 mph. The news comes after rumors began flying around that Bugatti was indeed removing the speed limiter, which would let the Chiron hits its maximum speed – a supposed 285 mph.

That aforementioned rumor started after the publication Autoblog had an interview with Bugatti engineer, Willi Netuschil a couple of weeks ago and allegedly misinterpreted some of his comments. According to the Spokesperson that talked to Motor Authority, there have never been plans to “unlock” the speed limited due to safety concerns. These concerns would include adequate braking zones and tire integrity, among other things. So, if you’re hoping to see the Chiron topple that long-standing record, you’ll have to wait until Bugatti does it itself.

As a reminder, Bugatti will start delivery of the Chiron starting this fall, and it will be powered by a massive, 8.0-liter W-16 engine that delivers an amazing 1,480 horsepower to all four wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. It should be enough to put the car to 60 mph in less than 2.5 seconds and 186 mph in as little as 13.6 seconds. There are a total of 500 examples being built, including the various special editions that you know will follow the release of the production car. Also, if you are crazy, and were hoping to push a Chiron to 268 mph yourself, it’s quite possible that there will be a special run of world record cars – just like Bugatti did with the Grand Sport Vitesse.

Continue reading for the full story.

Why it matters

At this point, I can understand why Bugatti made it a point to reach out and correct the rumors that were floating around. By removing the speed limiter and advertising it, it is just begging for anyone that buys one to give that run a try. That could turn out to be quite dangerous as humans have proven again and again that we like to throw caution to the wind when our blood is really pumping. Plus, at excessive speeds of 270 mph, a professional driver really needs to be behind the wheel.

Bugatti customers are lucky the Chiron won’t be limited to an even lower speed as even 261 mph is quite excessive and nearly impossible to hit on most roadways. Now, the real question is just when Bugatti is going to attempt breaking that record itself. The Hennessey Venom GT technically already has, though, it didn’t complete both passes required for record-setting, so it technically didn’t count.

Bugatti Chiron

Read our full review on the Bugatti Chiron here.