Bugatti invites Mat Armstrong back to the factory and asks him to bring both his Veyrons in unexpected phone call

Bugatti finally invited Mat Armstrong over to Molsheim, France to check both his two Veyrons in person.

This marks the first time Bugatti officially recognized Armstrong’s rebuilds and opened its doors to him.

Quite literally, because Armstrong was actually allowed in, for the first time.

But it’s important to point out that one thing hasn’t changed.

The visit to Molsheim

Mat had originally planned to bring both of his Veyrons to Molsheim. However, shortly before the trip, his yellow Oakley Design Veyron developed a new fault, forcing him to leave it behind in the UK.

Once in Molsheim, Mat was granted access to Bugatti’s workshops and production areas, offering a rare glimpse behind the scenes at the marque.

Although there was little of the site he could show, he revealed that preparations were underway for Tourbillon production.

Mat was also taken on a pre-delivery test drive, which included a run on public roads before reaching speeds of 200mph on a runway.

Why did Bugatti invite Mat Armstrong?

Several people in the comment section made some pretty solid points.

“The Bugatti PR team saw a massive opportunity and took it,” one commenter wrote.

That’s a fair point.

Initially, Bugatti assumed this was just another standard YouTube DIY project.

They deemed it unsafe and therefore disowned the operation and blacklisted the VIN.

But then two things happened.

First, Armstrong actually managed to get the cars running again; second, the public buzz around these rebuilds never faded.

Some parts are still off the table

Bugatti’s sudden invite gave Mat the opportunity to clear up certain issues he’s had with the brand during his rebuilds.

Firstly, when the crew asked Bugatti why they couldn’t buy service parts, the answer was that they can.

An independent workshop can get service parts and service kits by going to an official Bugatti dealer with the car’s VIN.

“I feel like this is a new thing,” Mat Armstrong said, with a genuinely surprised look on his face.

Armstrong was also excited to find out more about the history of his car directly from the main source.

“I’ll be able to see what countries this car is being imported or exported to. I can see a full mileage timeline of the car and every time it’s had an ownership change. And the good thing about this Veyron is that it’s never been in an accident,” he said.

Until that point, Armstrong could only rely on external sources and paperwork that came with the vehicle, because a direct check with Bugatti had never been available to him.

It’s also true that they had previously been treated as outsiders.

By contrast, this Molsheim visit was friendly, officially invited, and the Q&A went well.

However, what didn’t change is that most repair parts are still off the table.

This specifically includes anything crash- or safety-relevant, such as airbags and windscreens.

The reason is liability.

If they supply a part they didn’t fit themselves and something goes wrong, they could be held responsible as the manufacturer.

Why the Bugatti Veyron wouldn’t start

The irony is that the video began with a little setback that proved Bugatti’s point.

Both Veyrons have been plagued with their own issues, one of these two wouldn’t even start.

The likely cause was the gearbox losing hydraulic pressure, which meant it couldn’t properly engage a forward gear.

There were no obvious leaks, so the plan was a full gearbox service: new accumulators, fluid, filters, and pump.

The bad news was that the initial plan to take both Veyrons back to France couldn’t work for this reason.

The good news is that now they may be able to get some official parts to fix them.