If you want to know how much money Volkswagen has got then you only have to look at Bugatti. The Veyron reputedly costs £4.5m GBP to make and sold on at a loss. In a way the Bugatti Veyron is an automotive vanity project, but what a project what a majestic vanity project it is. What the Veyron demonstrates is that Volkswagen has cash to burn and you would think with the whole emissions scandal buring away in the background the cheating, defeat device call it what you may all of this has hit VW hard. Therefore it is easy to assume VW accountants are scraping the bottom of the barrel for any spare cash they can find. That’s not necessarily the case. The Veyron is now sold out after a 10 year production run, 450 units sold. Despite the VW emissions crisis engulfing the entire network of VW brands the Veyron successor is still on schedule. Indeed Bugatti is revamping its worldwide dealerships in preparation for the Veyron successor which could be based on the Vision Gran Turismo concept seen at the Frankfurt Motorshow in September. Bugatti sales chief Stefan Brungs recently said of the company’s investment in the new showroom concept as a “fundamental investment in the future of the brand,”. So how do you justify a loss making concern in the face of mounting law suits, fines and reputational damage. If you are VW and own Bugatti then you just carry on as normal. The Bugatti Veyron was and is demonstration of engineering prowess, that its successor survives in the midst of VW’s self inflicted emissions wound is a demonstration that VW has plenty of cash to play with. Defeat device? What defeat device.