Bugatti supercars

You could say that Bugatti has been round the houses. Originally founded in 1909, it ceased trading in the Sixties. Rich Italian maverick Romano Artioli revived the brand in 1987 and in the following eight years he created the landmark EB110 and even acquired Lotus, before the business collapsed in 1995. Three years later, it was snaffled up by Volkswagen as part of its ambitious weltpolitik expansion, spawning the extraordinary Veyron. Troubled gestation notwithstanding, it remains one of the most incredible supercars of our times.

Make and model	Year	Price	Engine	0-60mph	Top speed
Bugatti EB110	1992	£281,000	3500cc V12, 553bhp, 451lb ft	3.6sec	209mph
	For	So good to drive that Schumacher paid for one
	Against	Went everywhere fast, including bankrupt
	Verdict	Great car, lousy economy. We wouldn’t have VW’s Veyron had  it survived

With Gandini styling, an ultra-exclusive name, a carbonfibre body, four turbos, up to 600bhp and well over 200mph the Bugatti EB110 had all the credentials but not enough customers.

Make and model	Year	Price	Engine	0-60mph	Top speed
Bugatti Veyron	2005	£840,000	7993cc W16, 987bhp, 921lb ft	2.5sec	205mph
	For	Given VW’s eye-watering costs, even a million quid is a bargain
	Against	It’s an engineering struggle to contain all that power, weight  and heat
	Verdict	There might never be another supercar like it

At launch, the Veyron stole all the supercar superlatives: fastest, most powerful, most expensive. We thought Ferdinand Piech’s pet project was a folly, but it turned out pretty good