Bugatti was the pride of the French carmaking industry a century ago, but, like other French achievements from the past, it ended up in German hands. This time, however, the change of ownership has proven providential. Otherwise, we would have only talked about Bugattis in the past tense.
However, the prestigious brand is in no hurry to join the early 21st-century gold rush of electrification and prefers to baffle the realm of motoring with its chariot-of-the-gods internal combustion creations. Mate Rimac, the CEO of Bugatti – and not at all coincidentally the owner of the enterprise that builds the Nevera all-electric hypercar – keeps the secrecy about when the iconic automobile brand will stop living off the (electric) grid.
This minor detail doesn’t stop us from speculating; it certainly gives visual artists and 3D illustrators something to dream about. After all, all is fair in love and war – and those two realms intersect at the communion of love for cars and horsepower wars.
One of Bugatti’s historic legends is the Atlantic – a magic grand tourer of the 30s – and its legacy of speed and luxury has transmuted in today’s Divo and Centodieci. None of these three cars are electric - no Bugatti is (yet!). Abel Bahri (abel_design_, by his hexadecimal nation passport) has envisioned a full-EV concept that would make Ettore Bugatti himself tip his hat in approval.
Photo: abel_design_
Appraisingly christened Atlantique – a very transparent allusion to the original Atlantic – the all-electron Bugatti vision is a blast, even by 2023 Bugatti standards. Imagined with an air-cleaving philosophy at its core, the gigapixel fantasy is befriending aerodynamics in a manner that even the Bolide would take notes after.
Abel Bahri’s design masterfully blends minimal air resistance with jaw-dropping looks, geometrically diverting air streams around, under, over, and through the car to extract every last ounce of downforce and high-speed stability.
Remember how the Aston Martin Valkyrie has wind tunnels carved in its body to keep the airflow as smooth as possible and diminish turbulence and vortices? The Spain-based car visualist uses the same concept that signs this Bugatti Atlantique concept. The front wheels are covered, but the suspension and steering rods are visible through the massive, gaping openings in the front fascia.
Photo: abel_design_
The emblematic radiator grille is no more, but a bell-contoured arch now adorns the Atlantique’s nose, effectively separating the front section in two air wings. A vertical spline runs longitudinally on the hood, from the nose to the wraparound windshield.
In a nod to fighter jet canopy styling, this Atlantique vision also sports a see-through roof that descends in a continuous curve behind the rear wheels (just like the original Atlantic shapes). However, a dynamic wing interrupts the delicate profile of the car at certain speeds. A second downforce-generating element is located at the bottom in a speed-tail manner, incorporating the rear diffuser.
Air ducts are on the back of the car to direct high-pressure air out of the wheel wells, and the massive overhang prompted the designer to elevate the trunk at head level. The luggage compartment features separate lids for each included suitcase, covering the cargo bays right behind the two passenger seats.
Photo: abel_design_
Would it be too daring to ask Bugatti to take this idea into future consideration? After all, they did try to revive the nameplate several years ago with the 2015 Atlantic concept that would come as either a front-engined V8 or a four-motor full-electric GT. So here’s something to look forward to – a pistonless, electron-eating Bugatti with alien looks and – most probably – a price tag just as out-of-this-world.
If you want to learn more about that 2015 Bugatti Atlantic, play the video below; the resemblance with the Atlantique interpretation of Abel Bahri is subtle but palpable. The long hood – enforced by the ‘V8 between the front wheels’ architecture – is alluded to in the Spaniard’s styling. However, his virtual creation is not compelled to adhere to mechanical limitations.
Then again, the original Atlantic from the mid-30s had a straight-eight placed mid-front, customary to the practices of its era. Hence, a long engine bay was inherent. With its imagined battery pack and electric motor, the pixel-carved Atlantique follows that trend, boldly against the current Bugatti lineup mid-engine dress code.
Photo: abel_design_
Again, from the pre-war inceptor legacy, this French-ised named hypercar boasts overconfident arches over all four wheels. The longitudinal separator – originally dictated by metallurgical limits of the 30s – creeps along the rear deck, splitting the back window and spoiler.
The story of this crest goes back to the original type 57 Atlantic model, conceived by Jean Bugatti (Ettore’s son) with a magnesium body. In 1935, welding magnesium wasn’t widespread –even high-end manufacturers like Bugatti refrained from burning a hole in the production budget with sophisticated production processes.
Instead, the coachbuilders riveted the two halves together, and the staple ridge was born. Naturally, these hindrances are non-existent in today’s carbon-fiber and space-age-tech-infused carmaking industry. But it is a gentle bow to a machine that embodied the spirit of Bugatti for decades, even after the speed demons of the third millennia have stepped up and stolen the spotlights.
After nearly two decades in news television, Răzvan turned to a different medium. He’s been a field journalist, a TV producer, and a seafarer but found that he feels right at home among petrolheads. Full profile
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