All posts by Francis Mitterrand

News

57 speeding tickets in 54 days made with VW Beetle

Driving a powerful and fast car in most cases can put us in a situation where we exceed the speed limit. But driving a regular car and collecting almost 60 fines in less than two months is a real skill. Such a situation occurred in Great Britain where a driver received 57 speeding tickets in 54 days.

Welsh driver John Kelly driving a VW Beetle became the record holder by collecting the most traffic tickets in the shortest time. He did the “achievement” from February 19 to April 14 at four locations, racking up £46,880 in fines. In all locations the speed limit was 50 km/h and Kelly drove between 70 km/h and 110 km/h.

The last speeding was recorded by a police patrol who stopped the driver and after determining that he did not have insurance and that he had not paid previous fines, confiscated his VW Beetle. After confiscating the vehicle, Kelly was sent to court where, in addition to the fine, the judge gave him 48 penalty points and revoked his driver’s license for 36 months.

A truly unusual “achievement” considering the short period of time and the number of penalties. This means that he collected at least one penalty every day.

Source: Wales Online

Auctions, News

1991 Lamborghini Diablo is for sale

In 1990, Lamborghini introduced its first production car capable of reaching a top speed in excess of 200 mph (320 kph), the Lamborghini Diablo. By 2001, 2,884 cars were produced, and one of them, a 1991 Lamborghini Diablo with only 38k kilometers (~23k miles) on the odometer, is for sale.

The Lamborghini Diablo is powered by a 5.7-liter V12 engine with 549 hp () and (620 Nm) of torque. It reaches 62 mph in 3.9 seconds with a top speed of (335 kph). The power of the hay is transmitted to the rear wheels via a five-speed manual gearbox. The car does not have power steering, ABS brakes or a traction control system. It is equipped with 17″ OZ Racing wheels wrapped in Pirelli P Zero Rosso tires, while for safe braking and stopping there are ATE disc brakes.

The car was bought new in 1991 by former Formula 1 world champion Mario Andretti. It wears its original Rosso red paint and is in excellent condition, having changed hands several times so far. Currently located in Florida.

Inside, fixed-back bucket seats upholstered in tan leather. Leather covers the lower dashboard and door panels. It is equipped with air conditioning (doesn’t work), a VDO clock, a gated shifter, a JVC head unit with Bluetooth, and speakers mounted in the rear bulkhead.

In 2020, the engine was serviced, the pipes were replaced, the cooling system was serviced, the cylinders were machined, and a year later the clutch cylinders were replaced. Carfax report shows no accidents or other damage.

The car was auctioned on Bring a Trailer, and the current highest bid is $140,000 USD.

Source: Bring a Trailer

News

Bugatti has already produced 80 percent of the Chiron cars

Six years ago Bugatti began the story of 500 Chiron cars that will be powered by the W16. All the cars are already sold out and so far the company, which became part of the Rimac Group a few months ago, has produced 80 percent of the planned cars.

With the published photo of the 400th Bugatti Chiron Super Sport, Bugatti celebrates the success of the expensive hypercar, and 20 workers worked on assembling 1,800 components. “Every part of the Chiron is a masterpiece, and assembly requires the most dedicated and exquisite specialists in the world. Our painting process, or finishing process, is so detailed that it takes up to eight layers to achieve the desired effect. Each layer is polished to perfection, a deep and brilliant mirror effect,” said Cristophe Piochon, president of Bugatti.

Bugatti continues to produce the remaining 100 examples, which will not be the last to be powered by the W16 engine. The honor will go to the Mistral and Bolide models.

Bugatti Chiron Super Sport is powered by a turbocharged 8-liter W16 engine with 1,600 hp (1,177 kW) and 1,180 lb-ft (1,600 Nm) of torque. It reaches 62 mph in 2.4 seconds, 124 mph (200 km / h) in 5.8 seconds, and to 186 mph (300 km / h) in about 12 seconds. The top speed that the Super Sport can reach is electronically limited to 273 mph (440 km / h). Power is transmitted to all wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

The car is painted green combined with Fierce alloy details around the front fascia, in the central part of the rims and elsewhere, while the hood is in Nocturne color. It is equipped with Sport Magnesium rims that raise the appearance of the hypercar to a higher level. The same color combination can be seen in the interior of the car. The seats are upholstered in a combination of green and Beluga black leather. A special atmosphere is provided by the Sky View roof, which provides natural light.

Source: Bugatti