We’re here with bad news. No matter how hard you try, you’ll never build the most impressive LEGO vehicle. Why? Because LEGO just claimed that title with this life-size Bugatti Chiron. What’s crazier? It actually…
For some time now, whispers of a new Bugatti have suggested a faster and more agile car was in the making. What many expected to be a modest power upgrade with some lightweight components added here and there, turned out to be drastic evolution in aggressive design, and a new benchmark in Bugatti’s record of absurdity. The new Bugatti Divo looks like something out of a video game, paired with genuine styling finesse and quintessential brand ethos. In all respects, Bugatti may have just blurred the lines of fanciful concept design, and attainable reality.
Logic and reason must be tossed out the window when contemplating the new Divo. A car that uses the same gearbox, engine, and cockpit of the ‘standard’ Chiron, but with a price tag that will empty your bank account twice as fast – it makes you wonder if the Divo also achieves twice the performance of the Chiron. Truthfully, that’s not quite the case, nor was it the intention. The Divo may use the same monstrous eight-litre W16 engine (producing 1,479hp) as its predecessor, but the way that it puts this power to use if where the Divo comes into its own. Better cornering, faster acceleration, and ultimately a more masterful performance on the track is what puts Molsheim’s latest creation in a league of its own.
Aside from a new chassis and suspension, Bugatti’s engineering witchcraft resulted in 37kg of weight savings over the Chiro, 90kg more downforce, and… a lower top speed. Whereas the Chiron keeps the fun going until 420km/h, the new Divo meets its limit at 380km/h. Is there a method to the madness? The answer lies with the extra downforce and negative camber of the Divo, which improves handling and nimbleness, but at the cost of top speed. Although one of Bugatti’s primary characteristics has been its benchmark maximum speeds, its willingness to embrace a different mentality is remarkably refreshing.
Where the mechanical upgrades may fool you into thinking of the Divo as a regular Chiron with some expensive tweaks, the striking design is here to set your mind straight. The aggressive design embraced by Bugatti truly sets the Divo apart from the Chiron, which, arguably, looks dull in comparison now. In no attempt to cannibalize its lineup, Bugatti has built the Devo to be an entirely new version of the Chiron, with almost every body panel unrecognizable to other Bugatti’s. The Divo has a newly-designed wide front spoiler, an entirely updated front fascia, sporty NACA ducts on the roof, a specially designed engine compartment cover, a new height-adjustable rear wing with active-aero, a more aggressive rear diffuser, reshaped tail pipes, and we could go on. The takeaway: mere words bear striking resemblance to pictures, as they both fail to do the Bugatti Divo justice.
In typical Bugatti fashion, the new Divo not only exudes madness in terms of performance, design, and sheer uniqueness, it also stays true to its roots by having all 40 units of the strictly limited production run already sold out. With its near $6 million price tag, it makes the Chiron look like a bargain, whilst simultaneously giving it a run for its money.
There are four days to go until Bugatti unveils the track-focused Divo this Friday at The Quail – A Motorsports Gathering during Monterey Car Week. Until then, we have this last teaser of the complete vehicle under a blue veil to try and draw out details. Bugatti once used the Vision Gran Turismo to tease aspects of the Chiron, and here it appears as though the French carmaker has returned to some elements of that concept while, at the same time, clearly evolving Chiron design language.
The rear wing is clearly toned down from the Vision GT concept, but a fin runs from the back of the greenhouse to the wing. The wheel arches stand out under the sheet, much punchier than the arches on the Chiron, and the rear fender contains a sharp edge. A clear departure from both the Vision GT and the Chiron, though, is the side line. The relaxed arc around the roof to the back of the cabin and down to the sills, a feature we’ve known since the Veyron, has been redone. On the Divo it looks like the roof line takes a shallow dip to a point, then makes a hard reverse to form a shoulder line that intersects the front wheel arch. Above that, a milder shoulder line descends from the cowl to underline the greenhouse.
“We’ve kept and further developed our Bugatti design DNA features, but on top of that have also taken the opportunity to exercise our freedom and create a completely new form language,” said Frank Heyl, the exterior design chief. Bugatti obviously wanted us to notice all of this, because the Divo example under the silk doesn’t have a side mirror.
Built by the company’s just-revived coachbuilding department and advancing the capabilities of the Chiron Sport, the Divo will bring “enormous downforce and G-forces.” Other than the top stabilizer fin and large rear wing, the additional feature we’ve seen to support its track mission is a vertical fin ahead of the front wheels. Cosmetically, it looks like the taillights will be LED or OLED with highly contoured shapes. We’ll have to wait until Friday for word on whether the 8.0-liter, quad-turbo W16 has undergone any changes.
Bugatti will make just 40 Divos, each with a price starting at 5 million euros, about $5.8 million in U.S. dollars, and nearly double the price of the Chiron Sport. Those numbers might be moot if every Divo is already spoken for. After brand CEO Stephan Winkelmann said “the Divo is made for corners,” and that it represents brand DNA “in terms of agile, nimble handling,” the number we’d really like to see is a Nürburgring lap time.
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Bugatti have revealed a new option for Chiron customers. Sky View will be available as an option on all new Bugatti Chiron’s going forward. It will debut on a model due to be presented at Pebble Beach next month.
Sky View uses two fixed glass panels inserted into the Chiron’s roof above the driver and passenger’s seats. The glass panels are laminated and said to offer ‘outstanding noise abatement’. They are also said to offer thermal comfort and additional headroom.
The panels are 65 cm long and 44 cm wide. The newly developed laminated structure features thin glass arranged in four intermediate layers. Each layer has its own individual task. First, undesirable wind noise is reduced and second infrared radiation is reflected away from the vehicle to ensure thermal comfort. The glass is tinted to prevent dazzle effects and to protect occupants’ privacy. Finally, harmful ultraviolet (UVA and UVB) radiation is filtered out.
Bugatti have also confirmed that, as a side-effect, the laminated design improves the stiffness of the roof panels so that the stiffness of the overall vehicle and crash safety, are maintained.
There is still no word on the much rumoured Bugatti Chiron Divo though. Perhaps it will feature the Sky View option!
Too much is never enough, especially when you’re talking about Bugatti supercars. The Divo is the next step in Bugatti’s continuing history of building the most covetable vehicles on the planet. Based on the existing 1,479 horsepower Chiron, the Divo is intended to be lighter in weight and significantly quicker around corners. Oh yes, and it’s almost massively expensive, with a starting price of approximately $5.8 million. If you want one, hurry up, because only 40 will be produced.
“Happiness is not around the corner. It is the corner. The Divo is made for corners,” says Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. “With the Divo, we want to thrill people throughout the world. With this project, the Bugatti team has an opportunity to interpret the brand DNA in terms of agile, nimble handling in a significantly more performance-oriented way.”
Little to no details have been released about the Divo ahead of its official introduction this August at Monterey Car Week. The powertrain will likely be carryover from the Chiron, which means the quad-turbocharged W12 will be there in all its decadent glory. The body could be significantly different, however, in keeping with Bugatti’s promise that the car has been honed to go around corners at physics-defying speed.
As for the name, it might conjure up images of a certain 1970s-80s band, but the Divo is named after Albert Divo, a French racing driver who twice won the Targa Florio while piloting a Bugatti race machine.
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With a price tag over $3 million, a special edition of Bugatti Chiron debuted during the Geneva Motor Show. Meant to keep your motor juices flowing, the iconic W16 quad-turbo engine is still running the show. It’s also sports ’16’ on the front grille just in case you forgot.
It’s the track-focused version of the Chiron (as if that wasn’t nutters already), with stiffer suspension, torque vectoring, and carbon fiber windshield wipers.
This is probably something we can’t buy at your local NAPA Auto Parts but we digress. It also went into a 40 lb. diet and quad exhaust to differentiate yourself from the no-other-person that owns the Chiron in your neighborhood. The track upgrade does not compromise the GT characteristics it’s known for, as it’s still great to cruise cross-country or through an apex.
You can’t go wrong nor hate the Chiron. It’s an automotive feat to produce over 1,000 horsepower and have it available to the public. The Sport just cranks up the exclusivity just a little bit more, and the red-black motif is delicious.
So, Jamie Foxx is doing pretty well for himself these days. He got a sweet new gig hosting a game show called Beat Shazam on FOX, his latest film Baby Driver got rave reviews at a pre-release screening at South by Southwest, and his relationship with Katie Holmes seems to be taking off. Since things are going so well in his life, he decided to treat himself to a nice new wrap for his car.
Of course, being an international film star and multi-millionaire, Foxx doesn’t have just any car, nor does he go for just any wrap. For the past couple of years, Foxx has been rolling a black-on-blue Bugatti Veyron, a car that even in stock form turns heads anywhere. I guess Foxx wanted to make his car even more ostentatious, and recently had it done up in a chrome gold wrap. He posted a picture of the Veyron in all its flashy glory on Instagram the other day, and it’s quite a sight.
Foxx also posted a little message to his fans along with the picture:
“I was feeling solid gold today when I drove in for work … #bugatti can’t wait for u guys to see the show #beatshazam people won life changing fortunes. And the back stories of the contestants will melt yo heart #foxxonfox may 25th on fox as part owner and executive producer it’s exciting to see it come together. Thanks to mark Burnett (survivor the voice etc) and Jeff Apploff the great!”
Good for him. Sounds like everything’s coming up Jamie!
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“A Bugatti is already a work of art in itself, one that transports both its beholder and its driver into new dimensions of reality.” – Bernar Venet
The Bugatti Veyron, an exclusive beauty in itself, produces a very limited number of special edition models each year, and now the latest rarity from Bugatti has been released – the Veyron Grand Sport Venet.
Bugatti bills its latest masterpiece as the “fastest artwork ever.”
As one of the world’s fastest cars, this version features the artwork of French conceptual artist Bernar Venet. Venet’s artwork graces the exterior and inside cabin of the Veyron.
With Art Basel Miami Beach happening this week, Bugatti wanted to showcase something special. Venet, a New York based artist, was approached by Bugatti to create his mathematics and science inspired art on the special edition Veyron.
Actual Bugatti Mathematic and scientific formulas, used when developing the Veyron, flow across the cars front and flanks over a rusted orange and black ombre finish. The inside cabin gets the same treatment with a wave of formulas on the door panels and the rusted look on the dash panels and leather trim.
The Veyron Grand Sport Venet is of course based on the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport.
The special edition Grand Sport Venet boasts an “1,001-horsepower rating for its quad-turbocharged 8.0-liter W-16 engine and a top speed of 252 mph. Of course, with its removable roof detached, top speed is limited to 224 mph, and with its umbrella-like temporary cloth roof fitted top speed drops to just 81 mph.”
Interested in seeing the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Venet in person? The car will be displayed during Art Basel Miami Beach at the Rubell Family Collection from December 5 to 9.
Wolfgang Dürheimer, the CEO of both Bentley and Bugatti, will soon move to Audi, but before he goes, he’s finishing up a few big jobs, one of them being the development of the 16C Galibier.
The concept was first revealed back in 2009 and ever since, rumors and leaks have had everyone wondering if the four-seat fastback will ever come to be. Then in 2011, the greenlight was given and the Galibier was set for production this year, eventually moved to next year.
Initially, the model was set to be less than 1,000 horsepower and have optional hybrid power but thankfully, that wasn’t outrageous enough for Bugatti. The Galibier was sent back to the drawing board and reemerged with enough horsepower to surpass four digits.
Production is now planned for sometime around 2015. Dürheimer’s recent chat with Car and Driver revealed, the Galibier will be original and blindingly fast, and “over 1,000 hp” which Car and Driver believes will be upward of 1,400 non-hybridized horse power, said to get beyond 235 mph and be “faster than anything on the market” – that includes the aftermarket sector.
Despite the Galibier still being redesigned, a few things remain, Dürheimer mentioned that the car will have technologies that are automotive firsts and I don’t know about you, but I want a car that has eight tailpipes!
Bugatti showed off a very special Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse at Quail Motorsports Gathering over the weekend. The Bianco and Light Blue Livery paint scheme is a tribute to the 1928 Type 37A, a legend in its own time and on loan for the weekend from Jay Leno’s garage.
The Vitesse is able to go from 0-62 mph in a double-taking 2.6 seconds. Check out the press release below for the full specs.
The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance showcases an introduction to some of the years best revealed production and concept cars.
If concepts and exotics are your thing, like they are ours, the Concept Car Lawn is the place to be and see the latest concepts.
Check out the gallery of this years Concept Car Lawn below.
According to the YouTube video description, the car was pulled over due to the lack of a front license plate.
The Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard, CA, has seen its fair share of Bugatti’s. And once again, the museum has another Bugatti on display. This time it’s the 2011 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport “World Record Edition.”
By the time Bugatti is finished with production of the Veyron 16.4 supercars, 300 will be in existence. Of those 300, 46 will be of the Super Sport version which boasts 1,200 horsepower! Out of the 46, five of them will be “World Record Editions” immortalizing the car’s record-breaking 268-mph top-speed run. The Bugatti on display at Mullin and pictured in the images below, is one of the select five “World Record Editions” and is on loan to the museum for a short time. In honor of the car used to set the top speed at Volkswagen’s Ehra-Lessian high-speed oval, it features the same two-tone paint scheme.
If you happen to visit the museum in-person, you’ll get the opportunity to also see a Veyron 16.4 Super Sport prototype and show cars from the late 1990s including the 18.3 Chiron Concept, EB118 Concept and EB218 Concept as well as a rare Bugatti EB110 SS.
