New York - If a car with a price tag of $1.25 million doesn’t seem luxurious enough - that’s how much the original limited edition Bugatti Veyron costs, before tax - now there’s an even more exclusive version, the Bugatti Veyron Fbg par Hermes, which costs nearly double: $2.3 million.
 
What makes this sports car so special? For one, with a 16-cylinder engine and 1001 horsepower, it’s the fastest legal car on the market, with speeds from zero to 62 mph in just 2.5 seconds. But for the fabulously wealthy, the addition of an Hermes-designed interior on top of the finest automotive technology is what makes it truly out of the ordinary.

“There are people in the world who want the very best,” said Alasdair Stewart, Sales & Marketing Director of Bugatti, on why the time was right for a car like this, at the New York unveiling of the vehicle outside the Hermes store near Wall Street - across from the Stock Exchange - on Wednesday, April 2. Said Stewart, five have already been sold, and only 10-15 total will be made. Each car is made to order.

While the “fbg” edition - named after Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, the street in Paris where the Hermes headquarters are situated - may seem an extravagant and unexpected pairing, there is a historical reason for the collaboration. Back in the 1920s, Ettore Bugatti and Émile Hermes met when Bugatti ordered a custom suitcase from Hermes for the first model of his car, and nearly 80 years later, the two companies decided to join forces again in homage to the original partnership.

Designed by Gabriele Pezzini, the interior features no visible stitches, utilizing the same sewing technique on the leather (bull calf) as on Hermes’ famous saddles. An Hermes wallet designed especially for the car fits into a console, and the trunk comes with an Hermes suitcase already in place. Even the door handles reference the handle of the original suitcase designed for Ettore Bugatti.

So when you’ve had your fill of driving the Veyron par Hermes, can the leather interior be refashioned into, say, an Hermes “Kelly” bag?

“Now, why would you want to do that?” asked Stewart.

Just checking.

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