The Bugatti Tourbillon¹ marks a significant milestone, heralding a new chapter in the illustrious history of Bugatti. As the first Bugatti in over two decades to move beyond the iconic W16 engine, this Bugatti New Car is not merely an evolution, but a revolution, embodying the timeless ethos of Ettore Bugatti himself. Mate Rimac, CEO of Bugatti Rimac, emphasizes that the Tourbillon is a direct response to Ettore’s guiding principles: “if comparable it is no longer Bugatti” and “nothing is too beautiful.” These mantras have driven the design and engineering teams to create a hyper sports car that is truly incomparable, setting new benchmarks for beauty, performance, and luxury, designed “Pour l’éternité” – for eternity.
Drawing inspiration from Bugatti icons like the Type 57SC Atlantic, the Type 35, and the Type 41 Royale, the Tourbillon is built upon three pillars: beauty, performance, and luxury. This Bugatti new car aims to surpass its predecessors in elegance, emotion, and opulence, creating an unparalleled experience for its driver and embodying a timeless quality that transcends fleeting trends.
The name “Tourbillon,” a French word referencing a horological invention, perfectly encapsulates the character of this Bugatti new car. Just as the tourbillon in watchmaking, invented in France in 1801 by a Swiss genius, is a complex and beautiful mechanism designed to ensure consistent time-keeping by counteracting gravity, the Bugatti Tourbillon is a marvel of engineering designed for timeless performance. This name is a subtle nod to Bugatti’s French heritage and its home in Molsheim, emphasizing a dedication to mechanical artistry and enduring excellence. The Tourbillon aims for mechanical timelessness, utilizing components designed to last and remain relevant for generations, much like fine Swiss watches. Eschewing transient digital trends, the interior features an entirely analogue instrument cluster crafted by Swiss watchmakers, ensuring that this Bugatti new car remains a timeless masterpiece for concours lawns for centuries to come, becoming an heirloom for generations.
Design and Aerodynamics: Shaped by Speed and History
True to Bugatti’s design philosophy, the Tourbillon is “shaped by speed.” Achieving speeds exceeding 400 km/h demands meticulous attention to every surface, inlet, and ridge, ensuring aerodynamic efficiency and optimal thermodynamics. This principle guides the design of the Bugatti new car, evolving around four core Bugatti design elements: the horseshoe grille, the Bugatti Line, the central ridge, and the dual-color split.
Frank Heyl, Bugatti Director of Design, highlights the influence of Ettore and Jean Bugatti’s creations, noting their aerodynamic ingenuity, innovation, and enduring beauty. Inspiration is drawn from the Type 35, whose streamlined shape originated from the horseshoe grille, and the Type 57SC Atlantic, known for its lowered profile (“Surbaissé”) that enhanced stance and proportion. For this Bugatti new car, careful volume placement achieves both functionality and extreme proportions, creating a sense of speed even when stationary. The lowered profile and emphasized wheel size contribute to a muscular, poised stance, ready to unleash its power.
The iconic dual-tone paintwork, pioneered by Jean Bugatti, remains a vital part of Bugatti’s design DNA and is reimagined in a modern yet authentic way for the Tourbillon. The Bugatti Line, inspired by the Type 41 Royale and refined in the Veyron and Chiron², evolves further, curving more sharply and leaning forward to enhance the side profile’s dynamic, leaping motion in this Bugatti new car.
Balancing breathtaking design with aerodynamic and thermodynamic demands, every surface, intake, and vent is precisely sculpted to manage the immense forces at 400+ km/h and to cool the V16 engine, electric motors, and battery under extreme performance. Leveraging two decades of expertise from the Veyron and Chiron, the Tourbillon incorporates patented technologies, including a rear wing that remains submerged at top speed, maintaining aerodynamic equilibrium. This wing increases downforce at lower speeds and acts as an airbrake for enhanced deceleration stability in this Bugatti new car.
A new diffuser concept, rising from behind the passenger cabin, ensures perfect balance, integrated with a novel crash structure hidden within the diffuser. This innovative design enables the open rear-end aesthetic. The horseshoe grille remains central to the design ethos, dictating the car’s lines and shaping the central fuselage. Flying fenders channel air beneath the headlights, boosting airflow to side intakes, showcasing intricate airflow management in this Bugatti new car. The frontal design, while sculpted, cleverly integrates an ultra-efficient cooling system, directing air through the front bonnet and enhancing downforce, while also packaging a sizable front trunk between the radiators. Electrically actuated dihedral doors provide dramatic entry and can be controlled via the key fob, door button, or center console.
Interior: Timelessness Inspired by Horlogerie
Rejecting the rapid obsolescence of digital interfaces, the Tourbillon’s interior philosophy prioritizes timelessness, drawing inspiration from horlogerie. Aiming for relevance on concours lawns decades and even a century from now, the interior of this Bugatti new car embraces analogue authenticity.
The centerpiece is a Swiss-watchmaker-crafted instrument cluster, composed of over 600 parts, including titanium, sapphire, and ruby. This skeletonized masterpiece, weighing just 700g and built with micron-level precision, remains fixed as the steering wheel rim rotates around it – a fixed hub steering wheel. This ensures an unobstructed view of instrumentation regardless of steering angle, a unique feature of this Bugatti new car.
The center console blends crystal glass and aluminum, revealing the intricate mechanisms of switches and the engine start lever. The crystal glass, developed over 13 stages for clarity and strength, and anodized, milled aluminum components showcase exceptional craftsmanship. Knurled aluminum switches control complex, visible mechanisms beneath the crystal. Starting the naturally aspirated V16 engine is a tactile experience, a pull-to-start and push-to-cease ritual reminiscent of classic automobiles in this Bugatti new car.
A hidden high-definition digital screen deploys from the center console when needed, displaying vehicle data and mobile connectivity, portrait mode for reversing camera in two seconds and landscape mode in five. Performance remains paramount in interior design, with seats fixed low to the floor and an electrically adjustable pedal box ensuring comfort. This design maximizes interior space, suitable for long journeys and daily use. Even the audio system innovates, using exciters on door panels and interior panels as speakers, a lighter and more efficient alternative to traditional systems in this Bugatti new car.
Christophe Piochon, President of Bugatti, emphasizes the authenticity of materials and perfection in every detail. “What you see is what you get,” he states, highlighting the use of genuine titanium, carbon fiber, and leather of the highest quality. The Tourbillon platform is engineered for excellence, reflecting Ettore Bugatti’s philosophy that every component, visible or not, should be a work of art. This Bugatti new car is stunning in every detail, recognizably Bugatti, and a masterpiece of engineering and packaging.
Powertrain and Performance: A New Dawn of Power
The Bugatti W16 engine, a benchmark of combustion engine technology, gives way to an equally incomparable powertrain in the Tourbillon. This Bugatti new car features an all-new 8.3-liter naturally aspirated V16 engine, developed with Cosworth, paired with a front e-Axle with two electric motors and a rear axle motor. The total output is an astounding 1,800 hp – 1,000 hp from the V16 and 800 hp from the electric motors. This achievement is remarkable, especially considering the naturally aspirated V16, contrasting with the Veyron’s 1,001 hp 8.0-liter quad-turbo W16. The new engine, constructed from lightweight materials, weighs just 252 kg.
Powering the electric motors is a 25 kWh oil-cooled 800V battery, located in the central tunnel and behind the seats. With four-wheel drive and torque-vectoring, the Tourbillon offers exceptional traction and agility. The electric powertrain, with motors reaching 24,000 RPM and integrated silicon-carbide inverters, is among the most power-dense globally, delivering over 6 kW per kg of e-axle mass. While prioritizing power and throttle response, the 25 kWh battery provides a usable all-electric range exceeding 60 km / 37 miles in this Bugatti new car.
Defying the trend of increasing weight in new models, especially hybrids, the Tourbillon weighs less than the Chiron, despite its advanced hybrid system and larger battery. This is a testament to Bugatti’s engineering prowess. The lightweight construction and instant electric torque deliver extraordinary performance. The advanced hybrid powertrain, lightweight engineering, efficient packaging, and aerodynamics significantly reduce emissions compared to its predecessor while enhancing the driving experience, pushing automotive pinnacle to new heights with this Bugatti new car.
Emilio Scervo, CTO Bugatti Rimac, emphasizes the Tourbillon’s incomparability. Elevating every aspect of the Chiron, the focus was on elegant engineering and new technologies to create a timeless masterpiece. The powertrain decision was crucial, considering W16 re-engineering, full electrification, or a new solution. The most challenging path was chosen: a completely new powertrain paired with e-motors, a new eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox, all developed specifically for the Tourbillon. Retaining the raw analogue feel of a naturally aspirated engine while adding electric agility was paramount for this Bugatti new car. The V16’s 9,000rpm redline sound is described as a visceral and awe-inspiring experience. The Tourbillon blends the best of combustion and electrification without compromise, dedicated to a memorable driving experience.
Engineering: Revolutionizing Chassis and Structure
The Tourbillon features an entirely new chassis and body structure. Constructed from next-generation T800 carbon composite, it incorporates weight-saving innovations like integrating the battery as a structural monocoque component and a motorsport-inspired crash composite rear diffuser. Front composite air ducts are also structural, optimizing the rigid, lightweight structure of this Bugatti new car. Low-pressure thin-wall aluminum castings and 3D-printed structural braces further reduce weight and increase stiffness compared to the Chiron.
The new chassis features multi-link front and rear suspension forged from aluminum, replacing the Chiron’s double wishbone steel construction. Organic-designed suspension arms and uprights, 3D-printed in aluminum, reduce suspension weight by 45%. The rear also includes an AI-developed 3D-printed hollow airfoil arm to enhance vehicle dynamics and aerodynamics in this Bugatti new car.
Advanced carboceramic brakes and a bespoke brake-by-wire system, integrated with the moveable pedal box and a vehicle non-linear controller, ensure superior braking performance. Bespoke Michelin Pilot Cup Sport 2 tires – 285/35 R20 front and 345/30 R21 rear – are developed specifically for the Tourbillon. The compact and lightweight front e-axle with dual motors and inverters fits within the Chiron’s package space, adding complexity without increasing size in this Bugatti new car. The clean-sheet chassis and body design also create more storage and luggage space, accommodating bespoke Bugatti Tourbillon luggage.
Coming in 2026: An Icon for Eternity
Mate Rimac concludes that the Bugatti Tourbillon embodies Ettore and Jean Bugatti’s uncompromising spirit. Their relentless pursuit of the best solutions, even if they didn’t exist, is the driving force behind the Tourbillon. Building a new V16 engine, integrating a battery pack and electric motors, incorporating a Swiss-made watchmaker instrument cluster, 3D-printed suspension parts, and a crystal glass center console is indeed “crazy,” but it’s precisely what makes a Bugatti incomparable and timeless. Without such ambition, Rimac states, one might create a great hyper sports car, but not an icon “Pour l’éternité.”
The Bugatti Tourbillon, this groundbreaking Bugatti new car, is now entering its testing phase, with prototypes already on the road. Customer deliveries are anticipated in 2026. Production will be limited to 250 examples, with a starting price of 3.8 million EUR net. Hand-assembly will take place at the Bugatti Atelier in Molsheim, following the final W16-powered Bugatti models, Bolide³ and W16 Mistral⁴.
¹, ², ³, ⁴ Footnotes as in original article (not included in output as per instructions)
