Bugatti makes Vision reality at Frankfurt

Having revealed its Vision Gran Turismo indigital form a couple of weeks ago, Bugatti has rolled out the real thing atthe Frankfurt Motor Show. While the show car ondisplay at IFA won't be going anywhere under its own steam, the carbon-fiberracer does serve as a design language stepping stonebetween the Veyron and Bugatti's next super sports car offering.

Real to virtual is generally the roadvehicles take when appearing in the Gran Turismo series, but the flexibility(and significantly reduced development costs) of creating a virtual vehicle hasseen everyone from Peugeot to Chevy hitting the digital bitumen with out-of-this-worldconcepts.

Bugatti has attempted to keep itsVision Gran Turismo firmly grounded in reality, with every component requiredto have a real performance function, such as the NACA air intake on the roof that directs air into the engine at rooflevel without creating turbulence in the inflow of the rear wing.

Other practical design features include the eight-eyeheadlights that flank the Bugatti horseshoe symbol on the front grille. Theseheadlights were specifically designed for the virtual car and perform anaerodynamic function by acting as air intakes to cool the brakes. Meanwhile,the central fin that runs the length of the roof contributes to the car'sdynamic stability. It's line is also echoed on the interior, where it merges with thecentral console to separate the cockpit from the rest of the interior.

And it's not just the design that has beengiven a dose of reality, with the car's virtual performance based on Bugatti'slatest simulation models of driving dynamics and aerodynamics. From this,Bugatti's engineers calculate that the Bugatti Vision Gran Turismo, with its W16engine, will reach over 400 km/h (250 mph) on the straights on four sections of Le Mans.

The virtual Bugatti Vision Gran Turismowill be available as a digital download for Gran Turismo 6 soon, but in the meantime you can checkout the real thing in our gallery.

Source: Bugatti