Latest news with #W16
Motor 1
03-07-2025
- Automotive
- Motor 1
Bugatti Drives Your Hypercar to 186 MPH Before Delivery
The Chiron era may be coming to an end, but Bugatti still has interesting details to share about the Mistral, the last of the W-16 breed. The 8.0-liter, quad-turbo machine broke cover three years ago as a €5 million roadster limited to 99 units, all of which were sold before the official premiere. Deliveries to customers didn't begin until last February, and now we're learning more about what happens from the moment the car is built until it's delivered to its rightful owner. Each Mistral undergoes rigorous testing for at least 248.5 miles (400 kilometers) to ensure everything is up to spec. If any issues are discovered, the car returns to the shop to sort out 'any irregularities, regardless of how minor.' It then heads back on the road for an additional 31 miles (50 kilometers), or more if needed. But that's not the most interesting part. Photo by: Bugatti Even before the owner sets foot inside the hypercar, Bugatti pushes the Mistral to 186 mph (300 km/h). It's part of a testing procedure to verify the ESP and ABS systems during emergency braking. As you can imagine, this isn't done on public roads. The company utilizes a section of an airfield at Colmar Airport in northeastern France. But the Mistral is capable of much more at full tilt. Last year, it reached 282 mph (453.9 km/h) at the Papenburg test track in Germany, making it the world's fastest open-top car. That's actually faster than Bugatti initially claimed, as the Chiron roadster was said to top out at 261 mph (420 km/h). Its predecessor, the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse, could 'only' hit 254 mph (408.8 km/h). Fun fact: the Mistral's top speed is only achievable with the roof removed. Bugatti's test drive involves far more than going fast and slamming on the brakes. From the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission to the removable roof mechanism, everything is thoroughly evaluated. Only three people are qualified to test the Mistral before it's handed over to its owner. Bugatti Mistral test drive before delivery 13 Source: Bugatti As one era draws to a close, another is about to begin. Bugatti will start Tourbillon deliveries in 2026, strictly as a coupe, though a follow-up roadster seems like an educated guess. The Chiron's successor might be even faster, as company CEO Mate Rimac has hinted that with the right tires, the new V-16 hypercar could break the 500 km/h barrier. That's 310.6 mph . Bugatti's CEO Knows What's What: Bugatti Boss on Turbocharged Hybrid Supercars: 'I Don't Get It' Bugatti's Boss Owns and Drives a Volkswagen Golf R32 Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
Newsweek
02-07-2025
- Automotive
- Newsweek
Mercedes Unveils All-New Racing Suits Ahead of British Grand Prix
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Mercedes F1 team has unveiled new racing overalls for its drivers George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli for the upcoming British Grand Prix at Silverstone. While a lot of the design remains unchanged, Mercedes-AMG's logo will sit there in bright orange. The subtle change creates great contrast with the black background. Not to forget the aqua blue touch that completes the overall look. The orange Mercedes logo will also feature on the W16 F1 car this weekend to celebrate the launch of the AMG GT XX. Mercedes also confirmed that Russell and Antonelli will sport helmets with a dash of orange for the celebratory weekend. Addressing the updated livery for this weekend, Mercedes said in a statement: "It's all to do with our celebration of the three-pointed star's past, present, and future, as F1 gets set to celebrate its 75th anniversary, at the home of the very first F1 World Championship race in 1950. Mercedes' British driver George Russell drives to the start of the first practice session at the Red Bull Ring race track in Spielberg, Austria, on June 27, 2025, ahead of the Formula One Austrian Grand... Mercedes' British driver George Russell drives to the start of the first practice session at the Red Bull Ring race track in Spielberg, Austria, on June 27, 2025, ahead of the Formula One Austrian Grand Prix. More Andrej ISAKOVIC / AFP/Getty Images "The future will be seen with the CONCEPT AMG GT XX, Mercedes-AMG's pioneering technology programme, that recently launched at Mercedes-AMG's Affalterbach headquarters with George, Kimi and Valtteri. "A concept car that offers insight into the first series-production model based on high performance will be on display at Silverstone. The concept car's eye-catching sunset beam orange livery is inspired by the revolutionary Mercedes C111 vehicles of the 1960s and 1970s. "The sunset beam orange accents will feature on the W16 including the famous three-pointed stars on its nose and engine cover, driver overalls, and both George and Kimi will run special helmets incorporating the colour in celebration of the CONCEPT AMG GT XX launch. "The high-voltage battery in the CONCEPT AMG GT XX is a completely new development. It benefits from all the experience from the AMG ONE and Formula 1 as well as the knowledge of the best engineers from Mercedes-AMG in Affalterbach and Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains (HPP) in Brixworth." Markus Schäfer, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, Chief Technology Officer, Development and Procurement, said: "The best minds in our global R&D network have contributed their extensive expertise – from Mercedes-Benz in Sindelfingen and Untertürkheim to Mercedes-AMG in Affalterbach and YASA in the UK to our Formula 1 drivetrain experts at Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains in Brixworth. "Together, they have developed the CONCEPT AMG GT XX and are providing an insight into pioneering drivetrain technology and the future of performance."
Top Gear
19-06-2025
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Bugatti: three one-offs that didn't happen... and 20 of its biggest numbers
Advertisement A GT with the W16 stuffed up front. Quite a few visual similarities to one-off La Voiture Noir. This with a V16 in the nose? Yes please. Advertisement - Page continues below Based on the Taycan platform, but with a petrol-electric powertrain. A modern take on the 1936 Type 57 Atlantic with a clamshell boot and butterfly doors. You might like This 2008 concept, based on the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport, predated the flurry of speedsters from Ferrari (Monza), McLaren (Elva) and Aston (Speedster). Advertisement - Page continues below Litres, four turbos and 16 cylinders make up Bugatti's W16 engine. Parts used in assembling each W16 powertrain. Every one is hand built. Seconds it'd take the Veyron's coolant pump to fill your average bathtub. Deceleration force from the Veyron's air brake. Tilts to 55° in 0.4secs when brake pedal applied. Advertisement - Page continues below Minutes it takes to drain the Chiron's fuel tank at vmax. Three secs quicker than the Veyron. Volume of air the Chiron guzzles per minute flat out, as much as we breathe in five days. Advertisement - Page continues below Recorded speed set by Andy Wallace in the Chiron Super Sport 300+. Ground the Chiron covered at full whack during its record run. Price of a single Chiron rear tyre from your local Halfords. Plus fitting. Number of bargain priced pedigree racehorses you could buy for the £3.8m Tourbillon. Total output of the Tourbillon: 986bhp from the engine, 789bhp from the three e-motors. 8.3-litre nat-asp V16 sits at the heart of the Tourbillon. Ear defenders on. Dry weight of the Bolide. Powerplant weighs 700kg alone. Lateral force the Bolide generates when cornering. Enough to make you dizzy. Total downforce the Bolide produces at its 236mph vmax. Bugatti's record number of deliveries in a year, set in 2023. Approximate amount the average Bugatti buyer spends on options. Weight of Bugatti's oval emblem. Each takes 10 hours and 20 people to create. Victories in the Le Mans 24-Hour Race, back in 1937 and 1939. Winner of Top Gear's Car of the Year award, in 2005. Shared with the Toyota Aygo. See more on Supercars
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Emilia Romagna Grand Prix qualifying results: Oscar Piastri captures pole position
Are we headed to another dominant Saturday from McLaren, or will their rivals spring a surprise in Formula 1 qualifying at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix? The McLaren duo of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris has led the way over all three practice sessions. Piastri topped the timing sheets in both FP1 and FP2 — with Norris right behind him in P2 — while it was Norris who was fastest earlier today in FP3, with Piastri behind him in second. Advertisement A major story to watch in today's qualifying session is the soft C6 compound, which is being used for the first time this season at Imola. While drivers switched from the medium compound to the softs late in FP3, few improvements were found in lap times. The possible reason? The soft tires were overheating by the end of the lap, decreasing grip levels through the final few corners of the circuit. That might change how teams approach their warmup laps during qualifying, which could increase the traffic we see during Q1. It could be a chaotic qualifying session, and we will have it covered live for you here at SB Nation, from the start of Q1 through the session. Here is the provisional grid, which we will fill in as qualifying unfolds at Imola: Advertisement Note: Updates are all in Eastern time. Q3 qualifying notes 11:35: Russell leaps ahead of Norris on the medium compound, but the day belongs to Oscar Piastri. His lap takes pole position, just 0.034 seconds ahead of Verstappen. Here is your provisional top ten. Piastri Verstappen Russell Norris Alonso Sainz Albon Stroll Hadjar Gasly 11:34: Verstappen was purple through the first sector, but had a bit of a scruffy second sector. Norris' time was good for third. 11:33: Piastri's final push lap has him ahead of Verstappen's benchmark time through the first two sectors. 11:30: Verstappen is the first of the drivers to pull out of the garage for a final push lap. Just over three minutes remain in Q3 and pole position is on the line. Advertisement Again Aston Martin bolts on medium tires for both Alonso and Stroll, but they are not alone. George Russell rolls out of the Mercedes garage with a set of mediums bolted onto his W16. 11:27: Opening push laps are done and it is Verstappen on provisional pole, just ahead of Piastri. Here is the current top ten, with each driver preparing for one more push lap: Verstappen Piastri Norris Russell Hadjar Stroll Alonso Sainz Albon Gasly 11:22: Q3 begins and all ten drivers roll out on a set of soft tires. 11:20: I cannot remember the last time we took stock of tires remaining on Saturday, this was the number of each compound the drivers had coming into the day today: Advertisement iven what we just saw from Aston Martin at the end of Q2, do we see more sets of mediums here in Q3? Q2 qualifying notes 11:16: Here are the top ten from Q2: Sainz Piastri Norris Russell Verstappen Alonso Stroll Gasly Hadjar Albon 11:15: Aston Martin's gamble works. Both Stroll and Alonso advance, with Stroll in P7 and Alonso in P6. Who do they knock out? The Ferrari duo of Leclerc and Hamilton. Leclerc finishes in P11 and Hamilton in P12. Antonelli, Bortoleto, and Colapinto join the in the elimination zone. 11:14: Sainz posts and absolute banger of a lap to go P1 as the clock expires. 11:09: With under four minutes left in Q2 the cars roar out of their respective garages. Interestingly enough both Alonso and Stroll have a set of medium tires bolted on, as Aston Martin is placing a bet on the C5 mediums being quicker than the C6 softs. Advertisement 11:08: Williams reports that both Albon and Sainz used scrubbed soft tires for their first laps in Q2. Albon currently sits P9 on the timing sheets, while Albon is down in P13. 11:06: With just under seven minutes remaining in Q2 the bottom five drivers are: Stroll, Gasly, Albon, Bortoleto, and Colapinto. 11:04: The first push laps are done and we have a McLaren one-two atop the timing sheets, with Piastri just 0.020 seconds ahead of Norris. 11:01: As a reminder we have 14 cars in Q2, as Colapinto did advance to Q2 but his crash at the end of Q1 ended his day. 10:59: Q2 is finally underway and it is indeed Bortoleto who takes to the track first, followed by Verstappen. Advertisement 10:58: Haas reports that Bearman's lap has not been reinstated, and he is out of qualifying. 10:56: Bortoleto rolls out of the garage and takes his place on pit lane, so he's convinced he is through ... Now we wait to see if Haas sends Bearman out too. 10:53: Race officials report that Q2 will begin at 4:58 local time/10:58 Eastern time. Alex Brundle on F1TV now shows replays that illustrate that Bearman may advance after all. 10:51: This extended delay is allowing some dark clouds to roll in ... 10:49: Both Haas and F1 confirm that Bearman's final lap is under further review: 10:46: Race officials have again delayed the start of Q2 as they check on the barrier after Colapinto's crash. Advertisement Bearman has yet to climb out of the VF-25. 10:44: Q2 will begin at 4:46 local time/10:46 Eastern. Q1 qualifying notes 10:43: F1 confirms that Bearman has been eliminated. Bortoleto advances to Q2. 10:42: Replays on F1TV seem to confirm that the red flag was out before Bearman completed his lap. 10:38: Jolyon Palmer on F1TV notes that lost in the chaos of the end of Q1 is the fact that Lance Stroll jumped to P4 on a set of medium tires. Yes, Aston Martin brought an upgrade package to Imola, but the medium compound might be quicker than the C6 soft tires right now. Also ... there is some weather off in the distance. More chaos could be on the horizon, literally and figuratively. Advertisement 10:35: The start of Q2 will be delayed. That will give us some time to sort out the controversy that is unfolding at Imola. F1 race officials have deleted Bearman's time, which drops him down to P19 and promotes Bortoleto into Q2 in P15. Haas will likely argue that he completed his lap before Colapinto's crash, but we will see how race stewards handle this situation. 10:34: Colapinto technically advances to Q2 in P15, but his qualifying session is over. Bearman survives, as he posted a lap that was good enough to move into Q2 just before Colapinto hit the wall at Turn 4. 10:33: Another big crash, as Franco Colapinto has found the barrier at Turn 4. As things stand the five drivers eliminated are Bortoleto, Lawson, Hülkenberg, Ocon, and Tsunoda. Advertisement Colapinto reports that he is okay as he climbs out of his A525. 10:32: Bortoleto's final push lap sees him jump into P15, so he has a chance to advance into Q2. His teammate Hülkenberg, however, found the gravel late in his lap and will be out in Q1. 10:30: With two minutes left in Q1 your bottom five drivers who are at risk of elimination are: Nico Hülkenberg, Gabriel Bortoleto, Oliver Bearman, Esteban Ocon, and Tsunoda, whose crash has brought an end to his day. 10:29: Only three minutes remain in Q1, and the cars are coming out for their final push laps. Notably Lance Stroll left the garage with a set of C5 medium tires bolten onto his AMR25. Teams have been struggling with the C6 soft compound as noted above. Advertisement 10:28: Times are coming in as Q1 continues, and surprise surprise, Max Verstappen is currently in P1. Replays on F1TV show several drivers, including Norris, Charles Leclerc, and Fernando Alonso dealing with some slides off the racing line and into the gravel. 10:19: The session will resume at 4:20 local time/10:20 Eastern. With one minute before the light turns green, cars begin to queue up in pit lane. 10:16: The red flag is still out at Imola after Tsunoda's shunt. You can see a replay of the incident here: 10:08: Tsunoda is out of the car and walks away from the RB21, and is able to climb into the medical car. Advertisement His RB21 has suffered significant damage, and he is likely looking at a pit lane start tomorrow. 10:06: RED FLAG. Yuki Tsunoda has gone off the line and into the wall hard, with the impact with the wall flipping his RB21. 10:05: We have some early lap times in Q1, and at the moment Alexander Albon is atop the timing sheets. Perfect time to plug my chat with the Williams driver from earlier in the week. 10:00: We have a green light at Imola, and Q1 is underway. 18 minutes are on the clock, and traffic is going to be a massive factor as noted above. Pre-qualifying notes 9:55: McLaren CEO Zak Brown predicts that the top three in qualifying will be Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, and Max Verstappen in some order. Take that for what it's worth. 9:47: During the F1TV pre-qualifying show, Flavio Briatore talks with Lawrence Barretto about the switch from Jack Doohan to Franco Colapinto. Briatore brushes aside the idea that Colapinto just has five races in the car to prove himself at Alpine, stating that how long Colapinto lasts comes down to 'performance.'
Indian Express
15-05-2025
- Automotive
- Indian Express
How Mercedes' latest material innovation pushes F1 sustainability forward
Written by Somya Panwar For 75 years, Formula One has thrived on innovation — much of it engineered for performance, speed, and spectacle. But the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team is adding another layer to that legacy: sustainability. In a landmark move that aligns with F1's shifting environmental priorities, Mercedes announced that by 2025, their W16 challenger will feature use of sustainable carbon fibre composites — marking the first time in the sport's history that this scale of sustainable material will be integrated into a Formula One car. The initiative, driven in part by Mercedes' commitment to achieving net-zero carbon by 2040, isn't just about optics. Roughly 75% of the team's race car will soon be composed of sustainable carbon fibre. 'When you combine performance and innovation, you create progress,' Toto Wolff, CEO of Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team and Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, said in a statement. 'I am proud to lead a team of problem solvers who are committed to driving sustainable changes.' The material itself is engineered from two essential components — fibres and a resin system. Typically, the composite is made up of 60% fibres and 40% resin, cured into a lightweight but durable material capable of withstanding the stress of elite motorsport competition. Mercedes' longstanding partner, Petronas, is onboard as well, aligning its own green fuel development with the team's sustainability push. The latest project sees Mercedes collaborate with Chestnut Carbon, an organization focused on ecological restoration and carbon removal. Two separate programs are underway: one targeting the carbon fibre material and another improving the sustainability of the resin system. 'This commitment is reflected in our ownership of the land and our 100-year project design,' said Ben Dell, CEO of Chestnut Carbon. 'We have developed a comprehensive Community Engagement plan to ensure transparent communication and positive relationships with the local stakeholders, reinforcing our dedication to both environmental stewardship and community support.' As part of this effort, Mercedes has committed to purchasing 5,500 tonnes of carbon removal credits between 2027 and 2030. The project is supported by a network of four to eight suppliers for each component of the composite material, and each part must still pass the FIA's rigorous performance testing before hitting the grid. 'We are proud to be at the forefront of sustainable innovation within our sport,' said Alice Ashpitel, Head of Sustainability at Mercedes. 'Leadership must be driven by innovation, and our team's efforts in this space are the latest demonstration of our ambition to become one of the world's most sustainable global sports teams.' Mercedes is exploring applications of these sustainable materials in industries like aviation and aerospace—an evolution of F1's role as a high-speed laboratory for change. As per sustainability magazine, Ben Dell, CEO of Chestnut Carbon commented: 'This commitment is reflected in our ownership of the land and our 100-year project design. Additionally, we have developed a comprehensive Community Engagement plan to ensure transparent communication and positive relationships with the local stakeholders, reinforcing our dedication to both environmental stewardship and community support.' (The writer in an intern with the Indian Express)
