Among the ranks of Lamborghini and Ferrari, Bugatti is a French auto company that makes vehicles with unbelievable power. It only has three luxury models in its lineup: the Divo, the Veyron, and the Chiron. These cars can cost upwards of $2 million each, not including maintenance fees. 

You don’t just pay for the name: Bugatti cars are specifically engineered for winning races and record-breaking speeds. The Bugatti Chiron reached a top speed of 304 miles per hour, according to TopGear. This is definitely impressive, however, it won’t be eligible for the Guinness Book of World Records because of a technicality in the rules.

The Bugatti Chiron

The car itself definitely has the potential to beat any speed record. The automaker promises that the car can reach a max speed of 261 miles per hour, with an acceleration time of 0 to 60 in 2.3 seconds. This is thanks to the Chiron’s monster of an engine. It’s a 16-cylinder, quad-turbocharged 8.0-liter capable of 1,479 hp and 1,180 lb-ft of torque.

The Chiron’s rear spoiler also adds to its incredible speed. It makes the vehicle more aerodynamic and improves its downforce so that drivers feel more stable when driving at over 250 miles per hour. The automaker has stated that it will fill up at least 500 orders for the latest Chiron, each costing $2.9 million. After almost breaking the top speed record, the automaker also announced that more powerful Chirons will be made in the future.

Average top car speeds

To put it into perspective about why breaking the 300 miles per hour mark is so extraordinary, consider the speed of your average car. The average top speed of a regular midsize car is reported to be 120 miles per hour.

A sports car enhanced with a performance package can go significantly higher, but it won’t reach speeds of over 200 miles per hour. The Chiron is designed to act as competition to racing cars in the big leagues. At 261 miles per hour, it beat the average Indycar’s top speed of 235 miles per hour.

Why it was disqualified

According to Guinness’s stipulations, the car has to run at the same speed going both directions on the same road within 60 minutes in order to qualify for the record.

The average of the two speeds is what determines the actual record. The Bugatti Chiron only went in one direction. Guinness says that this isn’t the most accurate reading, therefore the Chiron still doesn’t take the spot for the fastest car in the world.

Currently, the top speed record is held by the Koenigsegg Agera. This car is built with a V8 5.0-liter twin-turbo engine capable of 1,176 hp and 940 lb-ft of torque. An optimized performance package is available to supply it with even more power, up to 1,360 hp and 1,000 lb-ft of torque.

It can reach 0-60 in just under three seconds. Only 25 Ageras were produced, each costing $2.5 million. On its record-breaking run, the Agera reached a two-way average speed of 277 miles per hour. This beat the previous top speed of 270 miles per hour set by the Hennessey Venom GT in 2014.

As GTplanet notes, the particular Chiron used for this attempt seems to have been built with the sole purpose of breaking the top speed record. It’s ten inches longer than a regular Chiron and comes with an updated version of the engine that produces 1,578 hp. The Chiron may not have achieved its goal this time, but the automaker definitely has the skills and technology to make it a reality in the future.