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Article written by Bush Tyres
A Bugatti Chironshod with MICHELIN Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres has become the first near productioncar in the world to break the 300mph barrier, after reaching an independently verified speed of 304.773mph (490.484km/h).
The record-breakingcar was driven by, British born, Bugatti test driver Andy Wallace and it was achieved inAugust 2019 at Bugatti’s Ehra-Lessien test track in Northern Germany.
The MICHELIN Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres used for therecord were very similar to the regular Original Equipement (O.E.) tyres. They are marked ‘BG’, meaningthey can only be fitted to the Bugatti, and they are completely street legal –the only difference is that the casing belts of the tyres used on therecord-breaking Chiron were reinforced, specifically to handle the 5,300g which the tyres must withstandat these very high speeds.
During the development of the Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres which were designed specificallyfor the Bugatti Chiron, Michelin used its Technology Center in Ladoux, France, andits site in Charlotte SC, USA where specialist machinery was employed to carryout the most extreme tests on the tyres. In order to test the tyres at the extremespeeds that the Bugatti Chiron is capable of, Michelin used a test machinewhich was designed to test tyres fitted to the Space Shuttle, and can test atup to 510km/h.(316.9 mph)
‘Michelin is very proud to have been an integral part of this record………."
Commenting on therecord, Pierre Chandezon, Bugatti tyre design team leader at Michelin said:‘Michelin is very proud to have been an integral part of this record and it isthe fruit of the relationship between us and Bugatti which stretches backalmost 20 years. With this in mind, it was the trust built up over this timethat gave Bugatti the confidence to allow Michelin to develop the sole originalequipment fitment tires for the Chiron.’
For this exceptionalvehicle, Michelin and Bugatti engineers have collaborated on the jointdevelopment of the tyres and the chassis, making the most of cutting-edgecasing designs, materials and the latest production techniques. Thissimultaneous co-development of the tyre and the car brought together theoptimum levels of tyre performance for the Bugatti Chiron.
In addition totheir exceptional speed capability and their high safety levels, the MICHELINPilot Sport Cup 2 tyres also contribute to the comfort of the car on the road soBugatti Chiron owners can enjoy this prestigious supercar in all drivingconditions.
Front size: 285/30 R20 (99Y) MICHELIN Pilot Sport Cup 2
Rear size: 355/25R21 (107Y) MICHELIN Pilot Sport Cup 2
Over in our Spalding branch the influence of the far east could be easily felt as two Japanese classics were brought to us from Baileys Prestige and Performance. The first an immaculate Pearl White Nissan R33 GT-R having Michelin Pilot Sport 5 tyres fitted to a set of new light weight race wheels supplied by our friends over at SR Autosource.
Hoping for some warmer weather this 1985 VW camper van visited our Spalding depot in preparation for the suns return later in the year. The driver chose to have Rapid tyres fitted. This is a great choice of tyre as it offers peace of mind with a full accidental damage guarantee.
The Porsche Carrera GT was already a quick car around the Nürburgring. Can modern tyre technology really make much of a difference to its lap time? Hold onto your hats and delve deeper.