Bugatti Roadster, page #6

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New images show Bugatti's 1,824-hp Bolide track car in real life

Bugatti introduced a one-off track car named Bolide in October 2020, but the images it sent us were computed-generated renderings. It released a batch of fresh photos that finally show the model in real life. In a normal year, there is a good chance we would have caught up with the latest addition to the Bugatti family tree at an auto show on either side of the pond. 2020 is different because all of the events we normally cover are canceled, so the images give us a much-welcomed second look at the Bolide. It's just as stunning in photos as it is in the computer-generated graphics, and the new gallery proves this track monster is not merely a figment of some designer's imagination. It exists, you can look at it and sit in it. Odds are you'll want to drive it, too. It's built around a quad-turbocharged, 8.0-liter W16 that's related to the engine that powers the Chiron and tuned to develop 1,824 horsepower when it's slurping 110-octane race fuel. While that's an impressive figure on its own, it's even more mind-boggling when you take into account the Bolide's 2,734-pound dry weight. It weighs about 166 pounds less than the new, second-generation 2022 Subaru BRZ yet it has eight times the power. Nils Sajonz, Bugatti's recently-appointed head of special projects, shed light on one of the Bolide's design themes. He explained the x-shaped lights on both ends are a reference to the tape that race car drivers used to put over their headlights to ensure the glass didn't spread on the tarmac if it broke. Racing is a significant part of the Bugatti heritage, cars like the Type 35 were hugely successful, and the Bolide is the newest torch bearer. Will it race? It's too early to tell. As of writing, it's a one-off model that hasn't been approved for production. Bugatti notes that simulation testing reveals the Bolide can lap the Nurburgring in 5:23:01, a figure that makes it nearly as fast as the record-holding Porsche 919 Hybrid, and it takes 3:07:01 to go around Le Mans. The firm is done chasing speed records, but we're hoping it gives the Bolide the chance to prove its mettle on the track.

Bugatti Type 35 reborn as a sumptuous retro-styled roadster

German engineering and design firm Uedelhoven Studios has reimagined the Bugatti Type 35 as a modern roadster. It's visibly inspired by the original model, but it's lower, sleeker, and made largely with carbon fiber. Uedelhoven Studios isn't a household name, even in enthusiast circles, but it has helped create numerous concept cars including the 2020 Hyundai Prophecy, the 2019 Hyundai 45, and the 2019 Audi AI:Me. It explained that its designers began brainstorming ways to bring the Type 35 into the 21st century in 2015, though it's unclear whether Bugatti was involved in the project. We didn't see it when we went behind the scenes in its design studio to discover some of the unbuilt models it developed in the 2000s and the 2010s, including a V8-powered coupe. Called Type 35 D, a designation never used by Bugatti, the roadster is instantly recognizable as a follow-up to the successful race car thanks in part to a horseshoe-shaped grille surrounded by a thick chrome frame, a tapered body and light blue paint. The suspension system's components and the wheels are fully exposed, like on the original model, but Uedelhoven added fatter tires and a sizeable air diffuser that's wider than the body. Peeking inside reveals wood trim on the steering wheel and the gear selector, leather upholstery, and a copious amount of carbon fiber. The center console is loosely inspired by the one fitted to Bugatti's current-day models, like the Chiron, with round instruments (including a digital gear indicator). It looks like there's a screen on the dashboard, too, which strongly suggests the cabin isn't as closely linked to Bugatti's heritage as the body. What's under the hood hasn't been revealed. We think the front end looks a little too narrow to house Bugatti's thunderous 8.0-liter W16 engine and its four turbos. Released in 1924, the original Type 35 was powered by a 2.0-liter straight-eight engine tuned to develop about 90 horsepower, a magnificent amount at the time. "This was a project initiated by Walter de Silva for Volkswagen Konzern Design in 2015 and constructed at the Uedelhoven Studios. The Bugatti Type 35 D was purely a concept car to see what was possible with the brand. The team behind it consisted of various Volkswagen Group designers, including, Alessandro Dambrosio, Stefan Sielaff, Tancredi de Aguilar and Klaus Suttner," a spokesperson for da Silva's design studio told Autoblog.

Bugatti promotes 27-year-old former intern to head of special projects

Bugatti has put the future of its one- and few-off projects in the hands of a former intern. 27-year-old Nils Sajonz has been promoted to head of special projects to oversee the development of upcoming models. Sajonz joined the French carmaker as an intern in 2015, and he wrote his university thesis on a race car developed for autonomous racing. While the prototype never hit the track, executives hired him as a designer after he graduated. He contributed to projects like the La Voiture Noire, the Centodieci, the Divo, and the Bolide. Working in Bugatti's design department requires a thorough understanding of its heritage, which includes obscure electric cars and championship-winning single-seaters. Many of the unbuilt projects that Autoblog discovered earlier in 2020 were visibly inspired by the company's past. Sajonz is still in his 20s, so he views design through a different lens than some of his older colleagues, but he noted he aims to bring new ideas to the team without diluting the key styling cues that have defined most of Bugatti's cars since its inception over 100 years ago. "The heritage of the Bugatti brand is not lost on me," he said in a statement. "It is important that future special projects retain the design identity of the brand, which is simply unrivaled." Interestingly, he shed light on why the recently-introduced Bolide track car has X-shaped rear lights. It's a styling cue that echoes the Bell X-1, which was the first plane to break the sound barrier, but it's also a reference to the tape that race car drivers used to put over their headlights to ensure the glass didn't spread on the tarmac if it broke. Sajonz will work directly under Achim Anscheidt, the company's head of design. We don't much about the future special projects he referenced, but we shouldn't have to wait too long to find out what his team has in store. Related video:

Limited-edition Bugatti Chiron Sport bridges the gap between cars and planes

Bugatti is highlighting the little-known link between some of its earliest race cars and aviation with a limited-edition variant of the Chiron Sport named Les Legendes du Ciel. Although it doesn't gain wings and an air-cooled radial engine, the model features several design tweaks made to catch the eye of vintage car and airplane buffs alike. "Many successful Bugatti racing drivers, such as Albert Divo, Robert Benoist and Bartolomeo ‘MeoÂ’ Costantini, flew for the French Air Force. It is therefore almost an obligation for us today to pay tribute to the legends of that time and dedicate a special edition to them," explained company boss Stephan Winkelmann in a statement.  Starting with a Chiron Sport, stylists painted the body in a specific shade called Gris Serpent (which means "snake gray" in French) that's inspired by the color of some of the planes that flew during the 1920s. For contrast, they added a white stripe that stretches from the grille to the rear wing, and they painted the front part of each rocket panel blue, white and red. Exposed carbon fiber accents add a finishing touch to the overall design. Look closely at the front end, and you'll notice another edition-specific touch. Instead of mesh, the grille's insert is made with laser-cut strips of aluminum arranged to look like a group of planes flying in a formation.  Brown leather upholstery dominates the cabin, and aluminum trim pieces create another visual link between the Les Legendes du Ciel and planes built over a century ago. Each door panel gains a hand-sketched image showing a Bugatti Type 13 racing against a Nieuport 17 biplane. Released in 1910, the Type 13 was the first car to wear the Bugatti name. Launched in 1916, the 17 was a single-seater appreciated for its speed and reliability. Power for the Les Legendes du Ciel comes from a quad-turbocharged 8.0-liter W16 engine, which produces 1,500 horsepower and 1,180 pound-feet of torque. It spins the four wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission linked to steering wheel-mounted shift paddles, and it sends the Chiron to a top speed that's electronically limited to 261 mph. In other words, it's faster than some of the planes it pays tribute to. Bugatti will make 20 units of the Chiron Sport Les Legendes du Ciel, and pricing starts at 2.88 million euros, a figure that represents $3.41 million at the current conversion rate. It sounds like build slots are still available.

Volkswagen posts quarterly profit despite drop in sales

Volkswagen returned to profit in the third quarter as surging Chinese demand for luxury cars helped offset a 1.1% drop in vehicle deliveries due to the pandemic, sending its shares as much as 3% higher on Thursday. The German automaker's return to the black comes amid spiking coronavirus cases in Europe that led governments in France and Germany to order their countries back into strict national lockdowns on Wednesday. "The coronavirus remains a central problem," Volkswagen Chief Financial Officer Frank Witter said in a conference call with reporters. "This situation now is anything but relaxed." But Witter said the group expected the economic recovery to continue and did "not anticipate any nationwide lockdowns in larger markets." Witter said the takeover of U.S. truck maker Navistar International by Volkswagen's trucking unit Traton was an important acquisition, but the "current economic climate will not make this easy." Volkswagen reiterated it expects to post a profit for the full year, saying its business "recovered noticeably" in the third quarter as sales in China of premium vehicles, including Audi and Porsche sports cars, rose 3%. The quarterly performance was also aided by a series of cost-cutting measures launched earlier this year. Volkswagen said its net liquidity rose to 24.8 billion euros from 18.7 billion at the end of the second quarter. Excluding one-time items, third-quarter operating profit was 3.2 billion euros ($3.8 billion), down from 4.8 billion euros a year earlier, but up from a second quarter loss of 1.7 billion. In a note to clients, Jefferies analyst Philippe Houchois described the results as a "solid performance with strong cash, but relatively muted in the context of the (auto) sector recovery." Last week, German rival Daimler reported a record 24% jump in Chinese demand for its Mercedes-Benz cars, boosting its margins in the third quarter. Italian-American Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Peugeot manufacturer PSA Group both also posted solid results this week. Witter said Volkswagen could not say for sure whether it would meet EU CO2 emissions targets this year, adding "it will be a tough race." At 1030 GMT, Volkswagen shares were up 2.9% at 129.20 euros. Related Video: Earnings/Financials Audi Bentley Bugatti Lamborghini Porsche Volkswagen

Bugatti Bolide weighs less than a Subaru BRZ and has over nine times the power

Since rising from its ashes for the second time in 1998, Bugatti has specialized in creating cars that are as fast and powerful as they are luxurious. And yet, competition — where luxury is superfluous — is a big part of its DNA. It renewed ties with its racing heritage by building a track-only two-seater around its mighty 16-cylinder engine. Bugatti proudly calls the Bolide — which means "a very fast car" in French — the fastest and lightest concept it has ever built. Concept is the key term here; the Bolide is a one-off, and it has not been approved for production yet. It's proof of concept that illustrates what a modern-day successor to the victorious Type 35 could look like. Stephan Winkelmann, the head of Bugatti, said driving the Bolide is "like riding a cannonball." Do you remember the 0.67 figure the company mysterious floated? That's the car's power-to-weight ratio, which was achieved using the kilogram-per-Pferdestrke formula used in Europe. It tips the scale at 2,734 pounds dry, and it has 1,824 horsepower. Put another way, it weighs slightly less than a Subaru BRZ, but it has over nine times the power. Unlocking the full cavalry requires feeding the quad-turbocharged, 8.0-liter W16 engine 110-octane race fuel. Its output checks in at 1,600 horsepower (a figure that's on par with the limited-edition Centodieci's) when it burns 98-octane gasoline, which is dispensed at virtually every pump across Europe. Computer simulations suggest that the Bolide's top speed lies somewhere north of 310 mph, and that it can lap the Nurburgring track in 5:23.1. Although the W16 is closely related to the unit that powers the Chiron, it received a number of modifications that reflect the fact that the Bolide was not designed for street use. It develops 1,364 pound-feet of torque thanks in part to four newly-developed turbochargers. Its intake and exhaust systems are derestricted to let more air travel through, and the oil system has been revised to cope with the high centrifugal forces experienced on the track. Created in eight months, the Bolide benefits from an array of weight-saving techniques, including some not found in production cars. All of the screws and fasteners used to build it are made with titanium, for example. The auxiliary drive shafts are manufactured using a blend of carbon fiber and 3D-printed titanium. Aerodynamic innovations are part of the package, too.

Bugatti previews what looks like a W16-powered race car

Bugatti captured our attention when it released an image of an enigmatic new model whose rear lights form an X. We still don't know exactly what we're looking at, but a photo of its powertrain sheds light on what's coming. Significantly, the digital rendering shows the car is built around the quad-turbocharged W16 that powers the Chiron. An earlier report speculated it would be electric, and that's evidently not the case. The engine is mounted directly behind the passenger compartment, and the transmission it's bolted to seemingly spins the four wheels. We also see a rectangular steering wheel, a pair of carbon fiber bucket seats, and center-locking wheels covered by carbon fiber discs. All of these parts look like they belong in a race car, but Bugatti is keeping additional details under wraps. "What if...?" again appears on the photo, so we're expecting something out of the ordinary.  An earlier teaser showing the number 0,67 also asked more questions than it answered. Europeans use a comma instead of a decimal, so there's a strong chance we're looking at 0.67. It's far too high to be the car's drag coefficient; keep in mind the original Land Rover Defender had a 0.59 drag coefficient, and the rear-engined Volkswagen Beetle posted 0.48. If this is indeed a track car, is it 0.67 seconds quicker than the Chiron around a given track? It's possible but unlikely, because that's a rounding error at best regardless of whether we're talking about the Circuit de la Sarthe, the Nurburgring, or Suzuka. 0.67 seconds quicker to 60 mph is plausible.  Is it a one-off, or a limited-edition model? If it's the latter, are there any build slots left? Your guess is as good as ours. All of our questions will be answered when the mysterious car makes its global debut online tomorrow, October 28, at noon Central European time, which is 6 a.m. on the East Coast and 3 a.m. in California.

Bugatti's next new model looks part spaceship, part hypercar

2020 has been a busy year for Bugatti. It unveiled the Pur Sport variant of the Chiron, it began building the Divo, and it dusted off some of the fascinating prototypes it canceled in the 2010s. It has at least one more surprise up its sleeve, and it published a dark, perplexing preview image to give enthusiasts an early look at the model. Bugatti captioned the sketch "what if...?," which suggests we're looking at a model that's markedly different than the other cars in its range. We can't imagine the French company would invite us simply to imagine what a Chiron with black wheels and gold brake calipers would look like. We're intrigued by the shape of what looks like the rear lights: they form an X, and they don't match the light signature worn by Bugatti's other models. We've seen the X theme on the aforementioned Pur Sport, though the four strips of LEDs are also reminiscent of something you'd spot in outer space. It's a very spaceship-like look that could hint at the brand's next design language. X marks the spot where what we know about Bugatti's next car ends, and speculation begins. Working extra-long hours, the rumor mill recently brought us murmurings of an electric car possibly fitted with four seats. Could we be looking at it? Alternatively, some reports claim more Chiron variants are in the pipeline, and this might be one of them. What's certain is that, whatever we're looking at, it's not an SUV; Bugatti stressed it won't build one. Finally, it's too early to tell whether the model is related to unverified claims that Rimac is preparing to buy the firm. Bugatti will introduce the model online in the not-too-distant future. Related Video:

Volkswagen may 'carve out' Lamborghini to list on the stock exchange

FRANKFURT — Volkswagen is drawing up plans to set up Lamborghini as a more independent unit, and is discussing long-term supply deals that could make it easier to list it on the stock exchange, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. "Volkswagen is in the process of carving out Lamborghini, and to organize future supply and technology transfer deals," one of the sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. The Italian sportscar brand, which is currently a division of Audi, could be partially listed, with Volkswagen retaining a controlling stake, the first person familiar with the talks said. There is no formal decision to divest Lamborghini, a second source said, adding that the timetable of any deal remained unclear. "This is a first step which gives VW the option to list the unit further down the line," the second source told Reuters. A third source familiar with the discussions said the future of Bugatti, Lamborghini and Ducati was discussed during a supervisory board meeting last Friday. The possibilities for how to electrify the Lamborghini and Bugatti brands through partnerships and investors was discussed, the third source said. Bankers and potential cornerstone investors in an IPO have been approached by the carmaker, the sources said. Volkswagen declined to comment. Volkswagen Group's Chief Executive Herbert Diess on Wednesday said the carmaker will announce "important steps" about the company's future before the close of the year. Volkswagen is reviewing what role its high-performance brands Lamborghini, Bugatti and Ducati will play within the multi-brand carmaker as part of broader quest for more economies of scale, senior executives told Reuters. A global clampdown on combustion-engined vehicles has forced carmakers to accelerate development of low-emission technology for mainstream models, leaving Volkswagen managers struggling to find resources to electrify low volume sportscar models. Related Video:

As VW electrifies, it questions the role of Lamborghini, Bugatti, Ducati

FRANKFURT — Volkswagen needs to change to stay relevant in the electric and digital vehicle era and will announce "important steps" to that end before the close of the year, Chief Executive Herbert Diess said on Wednesday. "Volkswagen needs to change: From a collection of valuable brands and fascinating combustion-engine products that thrill customers with superb engineering — to a digital company that reliably operates millions of mobility devices worldwide," Diess told shareholders at the company's virtual general meeting. Vehicles need to stay in contact with customers, offer new services and comfort functions on a weekly or even daily basis, he said. "We will take further important steps to set the course for this in the rest of 2020," Diess said. Senior executives told Reuters the company is reviewing what role its high-performance brands Lamborghini, Bugatti and Ducati will play as the company increasingly focuses on electric, digital and autonomous vehicles. Volkswagen, which also owns VW, Audi, Porsche, Seat and Skoda, is looking at whether it has the resources to accelerate development of electric platforms for smaller brands at a time it is investing billions to transform its more mainstream cars. Asked whether Ducati, which is known for making noisy combustion-engined motorbikes, has an electric future, Markus Duesmann, who oversees research and development for the group, said: "It will not take long until we see an electric Ducati." Whether Ducati, which is a medium-sized premium motorbike brand, would offer an electric variant, depends on whether a bike could offer range comparable to a combustion-engined variant, Duesmann said. Advances are being made in battery technology which could make this possible, he added. Separately Frank Witter, the company's chief financial officer, in response to a question about whether a sale of Lamborghini is planned, said Volkswagen does not comment on speculation about potential divestments. Lamborghini's Chief Executive Stefano Domenicali this week announced his departure from the sports car maker to take on a new job as president of Formula One. VW needs cash Volkswagen is reviewing the future of these three high-performance brands as part of broader quest for more economies of scale as it shifts to mass producing electric cars, senior executives told Reuters.