There’s no rest for the wicked in Molsheim. Just as the very last Chiron SuperSport leaves the factory and disappears over the horizon, Bugatti announces when its long-awaited successor will be with us. Mark your calendars folks, for June 20th.
Bugatti tease V16 hypercar reveal
For that is when the covers will come off Bugatti’s V16-engined, hybridised, 9,000rpm-revving successor to the Chiron. In a way, this is a car that succeeds both the Chiron and the Veyron – two sides of a W16 quad-turbo-powered coin – given it’s only Bugatti’s second all-new powertrain in the last 25 years.
It’s also a giant vote of confidence from one of the world’s great proponents and proprietors of EV technology, Mate Rimac, in internal combustion. So yes, this is a very important car, that goes beyond simply being the next Bugatti.
Bugatti says this is a car that’s not just for the present or the future, but ‘Pour l’eternite’, or ‘for eternity’. Very grandiose. Design-wise it’s said to take inspiration from Bugatti’s by-gone icons, from the Type 57 SC Atalantic, to the Type 41 Royale and Type 45.
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Indeed the Chiron SuperSport “L’Ultime” was only revealed three days ago, resplendent in French racing blue blending into a darker blue hue, with the names and signatures of significant motoring events from Bugatti’s history written along the side. It is the 500th and final Chiron, with the factory now falling quiet while upgrades take place in preparation for the new car going into production.
It’ll be the most significant overhaul in its modern history, with the line not only having to be adapted to produce the all-new V16 engine, but also the high-voltage hybrid system that will augment it. The first true ‘Bugatti-Rimac,’ the car will call on all the expertise of both Bugatti’s powertrain engineers and indeed, the expertise of Rimac’s all-electric powertrain division.
It’s a hypercar that promises to be more dynamic than the über grand tourers it succeeds, if the reported accessible and enjoyable performance of the Rimac Nevera is anything to go by. As ever, speculation can go ad-infinitum. We’ll know all on June 20.
