2011 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 8.0l "bleu Nuit" Grand Sport 315 Miles, One Owner on 2040-cars

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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.

Rimac is reportedly close to buying Bugatti from the Volkswagen Group

Croatia-based Rimac is finalizing a deal to purchase Bugatti from the Volkswagen Group, according to an unverified report. If the rumor is accurate, the sale would propel Rimac to the top of the automotive industry, guarantee that Bugatti's future is electric, and mark the beginning of Volkswagen's efforts to divest its empire. Executives in Wolfsburg gave the deal the green light in September 2020, according to anonymous sources who spoke to British magazine Car, but the company's supervisory board hasn't approved it yet. Selling the French company isn't as simple as sending company founder Mate Rimac an email with an account number. Insiders explained Volkswagen would likely trade Bugatti and all of its assets for a significant stake in Rimac that would be transferred directly to Porsche, which already owns 15.5% of the brand. Officials hope to increase that figure to about 49%, meaning Bugatti is theoretically worth about 33.5% of Rimac, which was founded in 2009. Bugatti told Autoblog it can't comment on speculation. Mate Rimac gave us a similar answer. Rumors of a Bugatti sale have hovered around the automotive industry for several years, and they've never materialized. In theory, spinning off the brand would be relatively easy because it's not as deeply integrated into the Volkswagen Group as its sister companies. It doesn't share its W16 engine with another carmaker, for example. And yet, Car speculates Lamborghini, SEAT, ItalDesign, Bentley, and Ducati will also be sold in the coming years, leaving Volkswagen with its namesake division, Skoda, Audi, Porsche, Scania, and MAN. Volkswagen is having an estate sale to fund the development of electric, autonomous, and digital technologies. Its downsizing will send ripples through the auto industry. Porsche could move upmarket if it doesn't have to worry about stepping on Lamborghini's toes, for example. Spinoffs are always risky, so some companies may not survive if they're not bolstered by economies of scale. As of writing, there's no word on who will pick up the brands being divested under this scenario. And, keep in mind none of this is official. Volkswagen hasn't commented on the report. We'll update this developing story as more information becomes available.

Bugatti has just eight Veyrons left to sell

Hard as it may be to believe, it has now been nearly a decade since Bugatti first introduced the Veyron back in 2005. And in the ten years since, the Alsatian marque has sold 442 of the seven-figure hypercars, leaving just eight roadsters still left up for grabs before one of the most impressive feats of engineering in the history of the automobile roars off into the sunset. Production of the Veyron was initially pegged at 300 coupes, but its life was extended by another 150 roadsters with the introduction of the Grand Sport in 2008. The last of the Veyron coupes (including the more powerful Super Sport model that followed) came to a close in September 2011, but production of the remaining Grand Sport and Vitesse roadsters has soldiered on since – and will continue until those final eight units have left the factory in Molsheim. If it's taken Bugatti over nine years to build the first 442 examples at a rate of about one per week, it should take about another two months to complete those final eight examples – that is, once production of outstanding orders are completed, and orders for the remaining examples are placed. Considering it's taken nearly five months to sell the previous seven examples, Bugatti might have to do what Bugatti does and roll out some special farewell edition to move those last few examples off the line. The bigger question, though, is What comes next? With development of the succeeding Chiron reportedly pushed back, there's been talk of one last hurrah for the outgoing Veyron in the form of an even more extreme speedster of sorts. But as Car magazine reports, after speaking to Bugatti CEO Wolfgang Durheimer at the launch of the company's merchandise boutique in London, the company will soon need to get down to the business of putting together the pre-production prototypes for the Chiron with its anticipated 1,500 horsepower and even more impressive performance. One way or another, we're not expecting a lot of down time at the French workshop in between production runs. Featured Gallery Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Wei Long 2012 News Source: CarImage Credit: Bugatti Plants/Manufacturing Bugatti Car Buying Supercars Bugatti Chiron