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$2 million Bugatti crashes into lagoon
Galveston County Daily News ^ | 11/12/2009 | Chris Paschenko

Posted on 11/12/2009 11:15:04 AM PST by Elderberry

LA MARQUE — The owner of one of the world’s fastest production automobiles accidentally drove his fine-tuned, French-built car into a saltwater lagoon Wednesday.

The man, who police said was from Lufkin, was uninjured after escaping the partially submerged Bugatti Veyron as it came to rest in about 2 feet of saltwater.

The two-seater, with 16 cylinders and four turbo chargers, can reach speeds of more than 250 mph. New models sell for about $2 million.

The man, who refused to give his name, was looking at real estate in Galveston.

About 3 p.m. a low-flying pelican distracted him as he traveled north on Interstate 45 just south of the hurricane levee near Omega Bay.

The man jerked the wheel, dropped his cell phone, and the car’s front tire left the frontage road and entered a muddy patch, which foiled his attempt to maneuver away from the lagoon.

The Veyron’s powerful engine gurgled like an outboard motor for about 15 minutes before it died.

Police and firefighters blocked the frontage road until MCH Towing employee Gilbert Harrison carefully wenched the car away from riprap and onto the soft, muddy bank.

It’s the rarest car in the world, not something you can just replace, the man said.

An Associated Press story in October mentioned a 2006 model Veyron for sale in Jonesboro, Ark., with an asking price of $1.25 million.

One of the prospective buyers was from Texas.

That Bugatti Veyron was one of only 200 made and one of only about 15 in the United States, the AP reported.


TOPICS: Local News; Outdoors; Travel; Weird Stuff
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To: Lurker

Wonder what his dedcutible is?


41 posted on 11/12/2009 11:42:29 AM PST by ken5050 (Save the Earth..It's the only planet with chocolate!!!)
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To: ken5050

Would the lagoon have to be a navigable water to apply?


42 posted on 11/12/2009 11:43:23 AM PST by Elderberry
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To: xp38

What kind of car is that, I am a true car hater, but this is a cool looking car.


43 posted on 11/12/2009 11:43:29 AM PST by Jim from C-Town (The government is rarely benevolent, often malevolent and never benign!)
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To: DannyTN
Yes it was!! How did you know?

I was the paparazzi who ran you off the road so I could get wet shots of Brinkley.
Sorry about that.

44 posted on 11/12/2009 11:44:56 AM PST by MaxMax (Obamao can't play in the Olympic reindeer games)
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To: mnehring
Oh wow, I just noticed from the pic that the Bugati was set on downforce mode. This is full power mode. It actually requires a second key be turned on. It reconfigures the spoiler (as shown) and other parts of the car for full power

Actually, I believe that in top speed (250MPH) mode, the full [high] spoiler is NOT deployed as it is in the picture. But you are correct that to get to HS mode, you have to stop the car, and use the ignition key to put it into that mode, and it does lower the car. But the rear spoiler actually goes smaller.

45 posted on 11/12/2009 11:45:07 AM PST by AFreeBird
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To: socialismisinsidious
He paid 1-2 million dollars for a CAR. That’s the part of the story that makes him an idiot.

Hardly. One is free to spend their money however they please.

And unlike a lot of people with iphones, a playstation, Xbox, and Wii, big screen TV, along with 23 inch rims on their cars that cost more than the car, I strongly suspect this guy isn't getting a government check every week or demanding I pay for his health care.

46 posted on 11/12/2009 11:46:28 AM PST by Phantom Lord (Fall on to your knees for the Phantom Lord)
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To: JoeProBono
Salt water lagoon. That's gonna hurt.

A simple flat repair on that car is a $20k effort; don't even want to imagine what it would cost to recondition after than expedition.

Bet his insurance rates go up LOL.

47 posted on 11/12/2009 11:46:31 AM PST by xsrdx (Diligentia, Vis, Celeritas)
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To: Elderberry
"A wonderful bird is the pelican
His bill can hold more than his belly can"

Leni

48 posted on 11/12/2009 11:47:35 AM PST by MinuteGal (Bill O'Reilly: 9/8/09: "Communism is not a threat to us anymore"-10/20/09: "Obama is not a Marxist")
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To: Elderberry
World class cars are not always driven by world class drivers...

wreckedexotics.com

49 posted on 11/12/2009 11:47:36 AM PST by Joe 6-pack (Que me amat, amet et canem meum)
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To: MinuteGal
"Hold muh binoculars......"

Leni

50 posted on 11/12/2009 11:49:01 AM PST by MinuteGal (Bill O'Reilly: 9/8/09: "Communism is not a threat to us anymore"-10/20/09: "Obama is not a Marxist")
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To: mnehring

51 posted on 11/12/2009 11:50:02 AM PST by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet)
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To: AFreeBird

Got it backwards.. thanks..


52 posted on 11/12/2009 11:51:07 AM PST by mnehring
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To: Jim from C-Town

http://www.shelbysupercars.com/

I may be in error of the price that I stated earlier. I was going by a price listed about a year ago but there is an flyer on the above website that says 1.5 million so I might be tad off. :)


53 posted on 11/12/2009 11:51:46 AM PST by xp38
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To: ataDude
Oh, man. What a waste of a perfectly good mechanical marvel. .... the moment the driver bought it.

There, I fixed it.

54 posted on 11/12/2009 11:52:24 AM PST by al_c (http://www.blowoutcongress.com)
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To: Elderberry

I smell an insurance scam....


55 posted on 11/12/2009 11:52:37 AM PST by tcrlaf ("Hope" is the most Evil of all Evils"-Neitzsche)
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To: Elderberry

That’s fine. I was worried it was a vintage Bugatti.


56 posted on 11/12/2009 11:56:05 AM PST by Little Ray (The beatings will continue until GOP comes to heel.)
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To: DannyTN
The idiot turned his expensive car into a Red Green special!.....
57 posted on 11/12/2009 11:57:34 AM PST by AngelesCrestHighway
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To: Elderberry

Dude, I can fix it. My dad is a t.v. repairman - he has an awesome set of tools.


58 posted on 11/12/2009 12:00:07 PM PST by Brent Calvert 03969-030
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To: xp38

Meh.
Derivative of just about every other “supercar” out there, while the Bugatti has truly distinctive styling.


59 posted on 11/12/2009 12:00:12 PM PST by SJSAMPLE
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To: mnehring

It’s the other way around. Top speed mode requires a second key, and it actually lowers the spoiler to lower drag. The spoiler normally deploys in “normal” mode (where it only goes, eh, 200 mph or so) for downforce. In top speed mode, you’re on your own to keep it straight, as the spoiler lowers flush to the deck and the suspension drops a couple inches.

}:-)4


60 posted on 11/12/2009 12:05:11 PM PST by Moose4 (Has anybody seen my tagline?)
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