When we announced Bugatti’s planned unveiling of a new supercar in September, few details were available. That changed this week at the Geneva Motor Show when the company took the wraps off the production version of the Chiron. It did not disappoint.
While the trio of existing cutting-edge hypercars—the Porsche 918 Spyder, Ferrari LaFerrari, and McLaren P1—boast impressive figures, the Chiron dwarfs them all.
The new Bugatti is powered by a mid-mounted 8.0-liter W16 with no less than four turbochargers. The engine cranks out a ludicrous 1,478 horsepower and 1,180 pound-feet of torque, making it the most powerful production street car in automotive history.
That prodigious grunt is routed to all four corners by way of a seven-speed dual clutch gearbox. Even though the Chiron is said to be about 340 pounds heavier than the Veyron, its predecessor, the performance from the new model is staggering: 0-62 mph in 2.5 seconds, 0-124 mph in under 6.5 seconds, 0-185 mph in 13.5 seconds, and an electronically limited top speed of 261 miles per hour. That last figure also makes the Chiron the fastest production street car that money can buy.
The Chiron uses a fully adaptive air suspension that allows not only for adjustable ride quality depending on whether you’re cruising or carving corners, but for ride height as well. Five presets are available to tailor it to the particular task at hand, whether you’re barreling down the Autobahn at triple-digit speeds or negotiating a particularly nasty speed bump in town.
Like Veyron, the Chiron employs active aerodynamic elements to bolster either top speed ability or handling, depending on the selected driving mode. If the hydraulically operated rear wing is raised for added stability, the Chiron’s top speed is lowered to 236 mph.
Helping reign the car in from those massive high speeds are hearty carbon ceramic brakes, which utilize rotors measuring 16.5 inches up front and 15.7 inches in the rear. The car rides on specially developed Michelin performance tires—an engineering feat unto themselves, considering the speeds the Chiron can achieve.
While the new model is similar in size to the Veyron, it’s larger in nearly every dimension—three inches longer, two inches taller, and a half-inch wider than its predecessor. Those expanded dimensions translate to additional legroom and headroom inside the two-seater.
And like the Veyron, the inside of the Chiron is awash with leather, carbon fiber, brushed aluminum, and other premium materials. While the Chiron offers incredible performance, it’s ultimately still a street car. As a result, Bugatti outfitted the cabin with as much of an emphasis on comfort as the powertrain puts on prowess.
It doesn’t come cheap though. Just 500 Chirons will be built in total, and each one will command a price of $2.6 million—and that’s before you add any custom options.
