Sorry Bugatti Shoppers, Veyron Shelves Are Empty

I hope you weren't planning on shopping at your friendly neighborhood Bugatti dealership today, because the last Veyron 16.4 has been sold. Bought by someone in Europe, it was No. 300 of the iconic super car that will go down in history as one of the fastest and most technologically advanced automobiles ever produced. It's asking price of more than $1 million is notoriously far less than the actual production cost.

However, should you have a few extra hundred thousand dollars lying around Mr. Potential Bugatti Customer, rest assured that it's only the lowly base model Veyron that's run out. The Veyron Grand Sport is still trickling out of the factory in France. That's the car that achieved the current top-speed record first set by Top Gear's James May and then bested by VW's own test driver. However, there is rumored to be a carbon-fiber-extensive Veyron successor launched in 2014 capable of breaking that record.

Phew, maybe it was a good thing you didn't get there in time.

Lexus LS 600h Landaulet: Fit for a Serene Highness

Behold, the royal wedding car. This special Lexus LS 600h L Landaulet was built by coach builder Carat Duchatelet for the marriage of His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monoco. We always thought you'd have to be pretty serenely high to buy an LS 600h L, so the addition of the convertible and bubble top is more than enough proof that we were right. Actually, Prince Albert already uses a regular LS 600h L for touring about his principality.

Lopping off half the roof of a giant Lexus is bound to turn the car's structure into something akin to Jell-O pudding. Therefore Carat Duchatelet added the latest in honeycomb structures, Kevlar and carbon fiber technologies to maintain chassis stiffness and torsional rigidity. But that's not as easy as it sounds.

According to the Lexus press release, "Parts fabricated from composites require very high temperatures for curing. These components were literally cooked onto the bare chassis in a specially prepared oven. As a result, much of the vehicle first had to be completely dismantled, involving the stripping out of some 20,000 mechanical parts, electronic components and interior features and upholstery. Re-assembly occurred under the close supervision of the Lexus engineering team, to ensure consistency with the original vehicle specifications and performance."

Then there's the transparent roof, which is a single piece with no reinforcements or pillars. It's "demountable" and is a lightweight polycarbonate shell that 8 mm thick and weighs only 26 kg. It's the same stuff used in helicopter windshields.

Of course, this Lexus Landaulet won't exactly be recreating the Monaco Grand Prix during the parade-speed royal wedding ride July 2. Either way, take that Maybach.

Top Gear Series 17 Debuts Sunday

Warm up your BitTorrent downloader, Top Gear is coming back this Sunday. Sure, you could wait for whenever BBC America gets around to showing the new episodes, but waiting is for losers. Or perhaps you don't get BBC America.

Check out the new series trailers after the jump. We'll be watching, will you?

The Future of Hot Rodding? GM Performance Parts E-Rod Fuel Efficient V8s

Call me crazy-- and I'm sure the good folks at every auction house surely will -- but the whole 100% original matching numbers thing has just never tickled my fancy. I'm a resto mod guy. I dig the old style blended with engines that run all the time. A side benefit of modern engines in old cars is that they don't smell like old cars which means they don't pollute like old cars.

And unfortunately, that's the point GM is taking with this 1955 Chevy Bel Air featuring the new CARB approved LS3 E-Rod. Yes, E-Rod.

GM Performance Parts is advertising the new 6.2-liter, 430 horsepower V8 as an eco-friendly alternative as it happens to get 23 mpg when hooked to GMs 4L65-E four-speed auto.

According to GM, the E-Rod engine, "delivers on the expectations of a new generation of hot rodders and custom car builders, where greater fuel economy and lower emissions play more important roles in their projects."

No pricing was announced as it varies by dealer, but the strikethrough price online for part number Part# 19244805 is $9,375.

23 mpg and 430 horsepower in a '55? Win win. Make this a Nomad and it's my dream car. The car will be on display at the Barrett-Jackson Orange County Auction this weekend joined by a Linginfelter '55 pickup with a 5.3-liter E-Rod making 315 hp.

Morgan ThreeWheeler Does Burnouts

The Morgan Threewheeler was one of the darlings of the Geneva auto show. It was awesome. There was leather, a front mounted Harley-Davidson V-twin, side pipes and, well, only three wheels. Crazy. Crazier still is that they're building it for real people to drive in the real world. And to drive a car in the real world, you need power. Burnouts are a good way of showing power...at least, that's what we think. And Morgan wants to make us happy.

So here are the coolest three-wheeled burnouts you'll see this week.

Priced: New 2012 Scion tC Release Series 7.0

Scion has FINALLy released pricing on the 2012 Scion tC Release Series 7.0. The 7.0 comes only in High Voltage yellow with black mirrors and black 18-inch wheels, the 2012 tC RS 7.0 will be priced from $21,625 when it goes on sale this summer. Get the automatic and you're paying $22,695.

Standard features include a Pioneer audio system with Bluetooth hands-free phone, Bluetooth streaming audio and HD radio, black and yellow seat fabric, Smart Key and TRD push-button start,

Scion is launching the 7.0 with a new ad campaign with Zeus, the God of Awesome who creates the 7.0 with his lightning bolt. Just like I remember from my classics courses.

New 2012 BMW M5 Shows Off in Argentinian Ad

By now, we've pretty much seen the 2012 BMW M5 from every angle possible and there's not a whole lot of discovery left except for how it drives. But there's still something about this car I'm confused / concerned / interested in so I've watched this video from BMW of Argentina about 11 times. Nothing new but some rolling footage.