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I didn't even touch the speed key, which unlocks the Bugatti Veyron's full top-speed potential. For our entire journey, it remained in the pocket of PHR, short for Pierre-Henri Raphanel, Bugatti's official test driver, minder, and former F1 racer. There was certainly no point in going faster than 233 mph, the Veyron's maximum speed without the key, nor would there be any opportunity on public roads. We were piloting one of two Bugatti Veyron Grand Sports, and the main objective of our drive was to go as quickly as possible from Ladispoli, which is northwest of Rome on the Mediterranean, to the Adriatic city of Pescara, thereby cutting across the lower leg of Italy.

My goal was simple: I wanted to take the world's fastest production car, the Bugatti Veyron, to its top speed of 253 mph. After a year and a half of planning with Bugatti's staff and some heartbreaking postponements, I finally was to get my chance.

When a garage-find Bugatti Type 57S Atalante coupe sold at Bonham's Paris auction recently for $4.4 million, the surprising thing wasn't its faded paint, rusty trim, and worn interior - it's that the car's condition likely bolstered its selling price.