Bugatti’s wild Bolide track special is entering production.
Deliveries of the hypercar are scheduled for 2024.
Just 40 units will be produced, each priced at €4 million (A$6.4 million).
The Volkswagen Group’s hypercar brand announced the production run at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering in Carmel, California.
It first revealed the Bolide concept in October 2020.
Bugatti calls the Bolide the “ultimate driving machine for the track” that possesses the “most extreme configuration level of the legendary 8.0-litre W16 engine and a must-have for Bugatti collectors”.
“The Bolide generated a great deal of enthusiasm and intrigue last year. Following its presentation, a significant number of enthusiasts and collectors asked us to develop the experimental Bolide as a production vehicle,” said Bugatti president Stephan Winkelmann.
“We therefore decided to make the Bolide a few-off in order to give 40 customers the opportunity to experience this incredible vehicle.”
It produces 1176kW of power and 1600Nm of torque from its quad-turbocharged 8.0-litre W16 engine.
Those outputs are identical to the Chiron Super Sport.
The experimental vehicle offered an output of 1360kW, though this was achieved with 110-octane racing fuel. The production vehicle will run on 98RON.
The company has retuned the W16 engine, intake and exhaust for more extreme responsiveness on the track. The cooling systems have also been modified.
In line with international FIA safety standards, the Bolide features an automatic fire extinguishing system, six-point safety belts, central wheel locking, and pressure refueling with a fuel bladder.
Bugatti claims a kerb weight of just 1450kg, around 500kg lighter than a Chiron Super Sport.
Beyond these details, Bugatti hasn’t shared much on the production Bolide so we don’t know how much it has changed. We also haven’t seen the production interior.
Bugatti said the concept’s aggressive diet involved the use of only titanium screws and fasteners, as well as polycarbonate windows, and hollow and thin-walled titanium alloy components, some of which are made on a 3D printer.
The Bolide concept was designed to have “minimal body for maximum downforce”, the highlight being the roof intake scoop’s morphable outer skin, which at low speeds is nice and smooth.
As velocity increases, the skin’s bubble field bulges out to reduce drag by 10 per cent and decrease lift by 17 per cent. This design also improves air flow to the rear wing, which at 320km/h generates 1800kg of downforce.
Other engine changes announced for the concept included air-to-air intercooling systems with pre-cooled water, and an oil setup, including a dry sump pump, designed to handle the car’s high centrifugal forces.
According to Bugatti’s simulations, the Bolide concept has a top speed “well above” 500km/h.
The car should in theory take only 5:23.1 minutes to complete a lap of the Nürburgring Nordschleife, which would be enough to topple the record-holding Porsche 911 GT2 RS with Manthey Performance Kit (6:43.30).
The Bolide concept’s unique body and carbon-fibre monocoque stands just 995mm tall, is 1.99m wide, and sits on a longer 2.75m wheelbase.
It rides on a push rod suspension setup featuring horizontal dampers with oil reservoirs inside. Stopping ability comes courtesy of a ceramic brake system with lightweight calipers.
The centre-locking forged magnesium wheels are paired with wide 340mm tyres at the front, and 400mm units at the rear. For reference, the Chiron has 285mm width tyres up front, and 355mm rubber out the back.
A compressed-air jack system with four rams allows for speedy tyre changes.
Pictured: Bolide concept interior
To enter the cabin, the driver and passenger need to lift up doors that are hinged up at an angle, and then sit on the car’s 70mm-wide sills before wriggling in.
The stripped back cabin has plenty of exposed carbon-fibre on the doors, sills, seats, and centre tunnel. Ahead of the driver is a digital display and a track-ready steering wheel. The pedals and passenger foot rest can be moved 150mm fore or aft.
