For an elite few, Bugatti s 261-mph desire car beckons
For an elite few, Bugatti’s 261-mph wish car beckons
The technology and automotive worlds are awash with debate over how quickly self-driving cars will arrive to end costly car ownership and begin the inexpensive ride-hailing revolution.
And then there’s the Bugatti Chiron, whose very existence blows a giant French raspberry in that general proletarian direction.
The Chiron is the physical manifestation of stock market and real estate booms that have left the 0.01% crowd flush with cash to manifest their wealth. While names such as Ferrari, Porsche and Rolls-Royce say “rich,” Bugatti says “don’t ask.”
More from USA Today:
At $Three million, the Chiron — pronounced shee-ron, after fabled mid-century Bugatti racer Louis Chiron — is the world’s most expensive production car, the unrivaled crown jewel of the Volkswagen Group whose holdings also include Audi, Bentley and Lamborghini.
At 1,500-horsepower and 1,180 ft-lbs of torque from sixteen cylinders, it is also the world’s most powerful automobile, capable of hitting sixty mph in Two.Five seconds and reaching a top speed of two hundred thirty six mph. Unless you use a special key to unlock its true top speed of two hundred sixty one mph, albeit where one might hit such a mark without losing your marbles or license is unknown.
And at only five hundred units, the Chiron is among the world’s most sensational works of mechanical art, handmade in a facility in Molsheim, France, so spotless it would wow a surgeon and by workers so meticulous they’d impress a jeweler.
After a two thousand sixteen Geneva Motor Showcase debut, Bugatti has ultimately commenced delivering its fresh Chiron. Typically, Bugatti sells 40% of its off the hook cache to Europeans, 30% to Americans and 30% to Russian, Asian and Middle Eastern buyers.
So far, just under half those five hundred remain unclaimed.
“People are putting money into hypercars, in part because they often retain their value very well,” says Maurizio Parlato, chief operating officer of Bugatti North America. “But where many companies are essentially suggesting you a race car that you’re helping them develop further, we’re suggesting a fully tested, reliable supercar you can take to the theater.”
Parlato, a onetime Ferrari executive, is too polite to name names, but what comes to mind are the $Two million Ferrari LaFerrari Aperta and the $Three million McLaren P1 GTR.
The largest difference inbetween the Chiron and those road rockets is that the Bugatti comes by its power the old-fashioned way, an internal combustion engine that lacks the electrified motors that give the LaFerrari, McLaren and Porsche nine hundred eighteen Spyder their extra hybrid-based get up and go.
Also in contrast to purely track-focused brutes, Parlato says the Chiron comes by its VW-like ease of use and dependability thanks to its parent company’s extensive R&D departments.
These include engine-testing facilities that enabled Bugatti engineers to develop 25% more power than the company’s outgoing Veyron thanks to four larger turbochargers that now engage sequentially. That makes for markedly sleek power delivery, especially from eighty mph on up under total boost, but the Chiron gives up a little off the line to its linear-torque fed hybrid peers.
VW’s state of the art wind tunnel also can in handy, as Chiron engineers logged three hundred hours of testing to develop an active aerodynamics system that not only increases high-speed downforce but also improves engine and brake cooling by as much as 50%.
And taking a page from Audi’s penchant for technology, this Bugatti boasts no less than fifty electronic controllers that monitor that car’s various vital signs, from a sophisticated LED lighting network to a retro-looking central dash console that permits the driver to keep tabs on every major Chiron system at a glance.
Inwards, the Chiron gleams with hand-cast dials, woven carbon fiber and flawless leather hides that are available in three dozen colors. If you order a Chiron, you may find yourself making more options decision than if you were buying a fresh house. Fitting, considering it’s the cost of most luxury homes.
Yet Parlato is keen to position the Chiron as the sensible person’s hypercar, thanks to not only its rigorous pre-sale testing but also a four-year bumper to pricey-bumper warranty that covers all major maintenance items. “You have the same sense of security and reassurance as someone buying a normal car,” he says.
If you’re able to spend $Trio million on car, it’s doubtful a free oil switch will peak the scales for an on-the-fence Chiron buyer. But perhaps it’s the thought that counts.
For an elite few, Bugatti s 261-mph desire car beckons
For an elite few, Bugatti’s 261-mph fantasy car beckons
The technology and automotive worlds are awash with debate over how quickly self-driving cars will arrive to end costly car ownership and begin the inexpensive ride-hailing revolution.
And then there’s the Bugatti Chiron, whose very existence blows a giant French raspberry in that general proletarian direction.
The Chiron is the physical manifestation of stock market and real estate booms that have left the 0.01% crowd flush with cash to manifest their wealth. While names such as Ferrari, Porsche and Rolls-Royce say “rich,” Bugatti says “don’t ask.”
More from USA Today:
At $Trio million, the Chiron — pronounced shee-ron, after fabled mid-century Bugatti racer Louis Chiron — is the world’s most expensive production car, the unrivaled crown jewel of the Volkswagen Group whose holdings also include Audi, Bentley and Lamborghini.
At 1,500-horsepower and 1,180 ft-lbs of torque from sixteen cylinders, it is also the world’s most powerful automobile, capable of hitting sixty mph in Two.Five seconds and reaching a top speed of two hundred thirty six mph. Unless you use a special key to unlock its true top speed of two hundred sixty one mph, albeit where one might hit such a mark without losing your marbles or license is unknown.
And at only five hundred units, the Chiron is among the world’s most special works of mechanical art, handmade in a facility in Molsheim, France, so spotless it would wow a surgeon and by workers so meticulous they’d impress a jeweler.
After a two thousand sixteen Geneva Motor Showcase debut, Bugatti has eventually embarked delivering its fresh Chiron. Typically, Bugatti sells 40% of its special cache to Europeans, 30% to Americans and 30% to Russian, Asian and Middle Eastern buyers.
So far, just under half those five hundred remain unclaimed.
“People are putting money into hypercars, in part because they often retain their value very well,” says Maurizio Parlato, chief operating officer of Bugatti North America. “But where many companies are essentially suggesting you a race car that you’re helping them develop further, we’re suggesting a fully tested, reliable supercar you can take to the theater.”
Parlato, a onetime Ferrari executive, is too polite to name names, but what comes to mind are the $Two million Ferrari LaFerrari Aperta and the $Three million McLaren P1 GTR.
The thickest difference inbetween the Chiron and those road rockets is that the Bugatti comes by its power the old-fashioned way, an internal combustion engine that lacks the electrified motors that give the LaFerrari, McLaren and Porsche nine hundred eighteen Spyder their extra hybrid-based get up and go.
Also in contrast to purely track-focused brutes, Parlato says the Chiron comes by its VW-like ease of use and dependability thanks to its parent company’s extensive R&D departments.
These include engine-testing facilities that enabled Bugatti engineers to develop 25% more power than the company’s outgoing Veyron thanks to four larger turbochargers that now engage sequentially. That makes for markedly slick power delivery, especially from eighty mph on up under total boost, but the Chiron gives up a little off the line to its linear-torque fed hybrid peers.
VW’s state of the art wind tunnel also can in handy, as Chiron engineers logged three hundred hours of testing to develop an active aerodynamics system that not only increases high-speed downforce but also improves engine and brake cooling by as much as 50%.
And taking a page from Audi’s penchant for technology, this Bugatti boasts no less than fifty electronic controllers that monitor that car’s various vital signs, from a elaborate LED lighting network to a retro-looking central dash console that permits the driver to keep tabs on every major Chiron system at a glance.
Inwards, the Chiron gleams with hand-cast dials, woven carbon fiber and flawless leather hides that are available in three dozen colors. If you order a Chiron, you may find yourself making more options decision than if you were buying a fresh house. Fitting, considering it’s the cost of most luxury homes.
Yet Parlato is keen to position the Chiron as the sensible person’s hypercar, thanks to not only its rigorous pre-sale testing but also a four-year bumper to pricey-bumper warranty that covers all major maintenance items. “You have the same sense of security and reassurance as someone buying a normal car,” he says.
If you’re able to spend $Trio million on car, it’s doubtful a free oil switch will peak the scales for an on-the-fence Chiron buyer. But perhaps it’s the thought that counts.