Photo: Bugatti
Introduced at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show and with more than half of the production already spoken for, the Chiron is the ultimate expression of a hypercar. Well, at least until Mercedes-AMG and Aston Martin bring out the next generation of hypercars.
While on the subject of performance-oriented automakers going hybrid or even electric in a bid to squeeze more performance out of their multi-million dollar dream machines, Bugatti concluded that it couldn't fight the current trends. And so, the Volkswagen Group-owned company finally confirmed hybrid bits and pieces for the successor of the Chiron.
Speaking to Autocar, chief executive officer Wolfgang Durheimer made it clear in what direction the ultra-luxury, high-performance automaker is heading. “Electrification will happen. The next car [after the Chiron] is a long way from being developed, but the way battery and electric motor technology is moving on – as well as regulations – it seems certain that the next car will be electrified in some way. It will still be too soon for a full electric car, I think – but electrification will happen." Pretty straightforward, I'd say.
What Durheimer isn’t so sure about is comes in the form of the pure mechanical capabilities of a vehicle festooned with hybrid technology. He believes the Chiron will never be outgunned in this department, the reason why the chief exec considers buying one for himself.
In the initial stages of development for the Chiron, the Molsheim-based automaker experimented with hybridization as a way of churning out more of the go-faster stuff from the quad-turbo 8.0-liter W16 engine. Bugatti wasn’t happy with the result, choosing instead to upgrade every little component of the 16-cylinder tower-of-power, chassis, and so forth.
Including 2016, production of the Chiron is expected to last eight years by the automaker’s estimates. The earliest we’ll get a glimpse of an all-new Bugatti is 2024. If all goes well, a four-door hypercar could also make the cut.
Speaking to Autocar, chief executive officer Wolfgang Durheimer made it clear in what direction the ultra-luxury, high-performance automaker is heading. “Electrification will happen. The next car [after the Chiron] is a long way from being developed, but the way battery and electric motor technology is moving on – as well as regulations – it seems certain that the next car will be electrified in some way. It will still be too soon for a full electric car, I think – but electrification will happen." Pretty straightforward, I'd say.
What Durheimer isn’t so sure about is comes in the form of the pure mechanical capabilities of a vehicle festooned with hybrid technology. He believes the Chiron will never be outgunned in this department, the reason why the chief exec considers buying one for himself.
In the initial stages of development for the Chiron, the Molsheim-based automaker experimented with hybridization as a way of churning out more of the go-faster stuff from the quad-turbo 8.0-liter W16 engine. Bugatti wasn’t happy with the result, choosing instead to upgrade every little component of the 16-cylinder tower-of-power, chassis, and so forth.
Including 2016, production of the Chiron is expected to last eight years by the automaker’s estimates. The earliest we’ll get a glimpse of an all-new Bugatti is 2024. If all goes well, a four-door hypercar could also make the cut.
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