A genre-defining automobile, the Bugatti Veyron was replaced by the Chiron at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show. Although the Volkswagen Group-owned French automaker promised to assemble no more than 500 units, the Profilée took the grand total to 501 examples of the breed. Of those 501 vehicles, precisely 156 have been recalled in the United States to address a minor compliance issue.
The vehicles in question were produced for the 2016 to 2023 model years at the Atelier in Molsheim, where the Chiron was and Chiron-derived cars are meticulously assembled to the tune of roughly 70 units per annum. Back in January 2024, the company was informed of a noncompliance condition affecting a development vehicle. With said vehicle turned on and the driver not buckled up, the seatbelt chime did not activate. Why, though?
Considering how much software goes into a modern vehicle, you shouldn't be surprised that said chime is triggered by a few lines of code. Bugatti and Regensburg-based Continental Engineering Services determined that an audible warning commences at speeds over 15 miles per hour (24 kilometers per hour) if the car travels 500 meters (1,640 feet). Alternatively, said chime will be triggered 60 seconds after starting up the engine.
There is, however, a problem with the described conditions. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 states that the audible signal activates if the ignition switch is moved to the on or start positions and the driver isn't buckled up. That implies a stationary vehicle. Bugatti and the instrument cluster software supplier also determined that all 501 vehicles feature the same software version, which was designed around ECE R16 regulations.
Given these circumstances, the 156 units delivered to US customers are recalled for a software update. The corrective software is currently under development. Be that as it may, dealers have already been informed about this recall. Owners will be notified by first-class mail no later than March 31.
Photo: Bugatti
According to an email sent to dealers nationwide by director of aftersales & customer services Alexis Ploix, dealers are urged to reach out to the impacted customers as soon as technically possible. Otherwise put, owners should expect a call or an email today or in the near future. As if that wasn't Bugatti enough, dealers have also been instructed to arrange pick up from the customer and transportation to the dealership. Of course, owners won't be charged a single cent for these services.
Being this nice with your customers can be explained in plenty of ways, beginning with the sticker price of a Chiron. We also have to remember the ridiculously high servicing costs, but more importantly, the Chiron-owning clients are extremely valuable to Bugatti. With the French automaker due to launch its next hypercar this coming summer, said clients will be the first to be contacted by their dealers in regard to a build slot.
Bugatti-Rimac big kahuna Mate Rimac made it clear that it's a heavily electrified vehicle. Powered by a different engine from the Chiron's 8.0-liter W16 quad-turbo leviathan, the yet-to-be-named successor was revealed behind closed doors at the end of 2023. First deliveries are scheduled for early 2026, and hearsay suggests that Bugatti's next hypercar will be rarer than the 450-strong Veyron.
There are plenty of rumors in regard to what's under the hood of the new model, beginning with a twin-turbo V8 à la the Lamborghini Huracan-replacing LB63x. The wildest rumor yet suggests a Cosworth-developed V16, which sounds a bit impractical given that it would be longer than the current W16. On the other hand, anyone remember the Cizeta-Moroder V16T with its transverse-mounted V16?
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News