Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L’Or Blanc

Bugatti has decided that the world needs just one more special edition model of the Veyron, because the countless others they’ve produced over the past few years just aren’t quite enough. This time Bugatti have teamed up with the German company Königliche Porzellan-Manufaktur Berlin (Royal Porcelain Manufacture Berlin). Like Bugatti, Königliche Porzellan-Manufaktur Berlin specialize in making the best products they possibly can, but instead of making supercars, they manufacture extremely expensive hand-painted porcelain dishware and figurines.

For some unknown reason, Bugatti and Königliche Porzellan-Manufaktur Berlin thought that their two companies should work together and produce a one-off Veyron Grand Sport which featured porcelain elements both on the inside and outside.

The car’s name, L’Or Blanc, translates as ‘White Gold’, which is a nickname sometimes given to porcelain. Bugatti are quick to point out that the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L’Or Blanc is the first car in the world to use porcelain in its design. At first it may seem odd to use a material which is more commonly found in expensive tableware. But ceramics have been used for a variety of jobs which may seem surprising, including; armoured vests, ceramic ball bearings, missile nosecones, electrical insulators, synthetic bones, and of course ceramic brake discs. Porcelain is just a different type of ceramic.

Dr. Stefan Brungs, Director of Sales and Marketing at Bugatti Automobiles, explains the rationale behind the car: “At first, it seems to be an unusual idea to use porcelain in a car, especially in the world’s fastest convertible. But this is what Bugatti stands for: the realization of exceptional ideas whilst striving for the utmost in quality and aesthetics. This allows us to continue Ettore Bugatti’s heritage, who himself loved to experiment with new materials.”

On the inside is where most of the porcelain elements of the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L’Or Blanc can be clearly identified. There are inserts on the side of the center console which say “La Maison Pur Sang” (The house of pure blood), and have a standing elephant embossed into them, there is also a rectangular plaque between the seats with the same non-sedentary pachyderm motif.

The exterior of the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L’Or Blanc features a very dramatic white-on-blue paint scheme which is dazzling and confusing at the same time. It almost looks like the car is constantly under powerful fluorescent lights which create a multitude of reflections across the bodywork. It might not be to every one’s tastes, in fact it probably only has a small percentage of likers as opposed to dislikers. But the cleverly executed paintwork is certainly eye catching.