Bugatti moving ahead with Veyron successor

Thu, 16 Jan 2014

With production of the Veyron coming to an end, all eyes are fixed squarely on Bugatti and what it
will do next. Because by next year, it will have sold the last examples of the Grand Sport and Vitesse roadsters, and after that there will be no more. And since the Veyron line is the only one Bugatti makes – or has made, for that matter, since Volkswagen took it over – it will need something else in place or it will effectively go dormant. The only question is what that next project will be – or more likely, given the timeframe, already is.

One thing which Dr. Wolfgang Schreiber – who is now president of Bugatti and was its technical director during the Veyron's development – ruled out in speaking with Top Gear is that there won't be any further development of the existing Veyron. Schreiber put to rest the longstanding rumors that an even more extreme evolution of the Veyron than the record-breaking Super Sport would be made, and that the vehicle would die after the remaining 43 examples have been built. Nor will Bugatti proceed with development of a four-door model. It's an idea that Bugatti entertained prior to the release of the Veyron with the EB218 concept at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show and again after it with the Galibier concept in 2009, but it's ultimately been put to rest. According to Schreiber, a four-door Bugatti "would confuse our customers."

What the Alsatian marque is focusing on instead is a new supercar to succeed the Veyron. We'd expect it to carry an evolution of the same W16 engine as its predecessor, though it would be cool to see it mounted up front in some sort of hyper-GT this time around. (But in that regard we're admittedly just spitballing.) Whatever form it takes, Schreiber is clear what its target will be: he's unconcerned by the Porsche 918 Spyder, McLaren P1 or Ferrari LaFerrari, and only has to answer to the Veyron it replaces. Whether it will also use a hybrid powertrain remains to be seen: "Maybe, but it's too early to open the door and show you what we have planned." The point is that, after shifts in management and direction, Bugatti has a plan, and is working to put it in action. We're eager to see what form it takes.

By Noah Joseph