What's this then?

This is the Bugatti Tourbillon, and it's probably the fastest car in the world right now.

Fast? How fast?

Well, how does a claimed 276mph top speed grab you? And a two-second 0-62mph sprint? And those figures are probably just for starters, with faster versions likely coming soon.

Wow, that is fast. What kind of engine does it have?

Previous Bugatti models - the Veyron, which was launched 20 years ago, and the Chiron - used an 8.0-litre W16 (essentially two Passat W8 engines, sort of) with four turbochargers to develop more than 1,500hp. This Tourbillon, though, gets an all-new engine - a naturally aspirated 8.3-litre V16 developed with the help of Cosworth. It produces 1,000hp.

Hang on, that's less power than the Veyron...

You didn't let me finish. That engine is tied into a plug-in hybrid system which uses a 25kWh oil-cooled battery (mounted between the seats) to power three electric motors, one at the back and two at the front. These add 800hp, giving the Tourbillon 1,800hp total.

So... it's a hybrid? Like a Prius?

In a manner of speaking. Imagine a Prius boosted by a space rocket. Mind you, it will allow you to drive on just electric power if you plug the 800-volt battery in and charge it up. Bugatti claims an electric-only range of up to 37 miles, which should allow Tourbillon owners to reach their city centre penthouses without falling foul of low-emissions zones.

It looks pretty brutal...

Indeed. While the Tourbillon uses a lot of the styling cues of the Veyron and Chiron, it's also somewhat leaner and meaner looking with a more protruding grille (still in the classic Bugatti 'horseshoe' shape) and tighter surfacing around the engine. Mind you, it's not impractical - there's a 'frunk' luggage area in the nose, and plenty of space in the cabin for two, even if the body has been carefully shaped for aerodynamics good enough to keep it stable at 270mph+. There's some clever stuff going on too, such as the mobile rear wing, which can tuck away flat for maximum speed runs, or act as an airbrake when you slam on the anchors. The rear diffuser, which helps keep the Tourbillon stuck to the ground, is also part of the rear crash structure, which saves weight and means that this car is actually slightly lighter than the Chiron it replaces.

What's it like inside?

Gorgeous, in a word. Have a look at the instrument cluster. There are no digital screens there, just proper analogue dials, made of titanium with sapphire and ruby gemstones inset (yes, really) and weighing just 700g. The instrument cluster is actually inside the rim of the steering wheel, which rotates around them while the dials stay fixed in place. On the centre console, there are milled-aluminium switches set into crystal glass, and you can actually see the mechanisms behind them working as you use them. And, like a proper vintage Bugatti, you actually pull the starter switch out to wake up the engine, and push it back in to switch everything off. There is an infotainment screen - it just stays tucked away until you need it, as Bugatti wants to imagine this car being displayed at classic car and concours events even a century down the road (just like those 1920s originals...) and so didn't want screens to date the layout. The touchscreen pops up from the centre of the dash when you want it to, rotating from a portrait layout for the reversing camera to a landscape layout for the infotainments system.

I'm guessing that none of this is going to come cheap...

You guess right. Have you got a spare £3.2 million about you? That's what you'll need, and that's before local taxes. Bugatti only plans to build 250 of these though, so you could just about think of it as an investment. Or a show car for your great-grandkids to bring to the Concorso D'Eleganza in 2124.

Hang on though, I'm confused by the name.

Ah, yes. Previous Bugattis - at least those made under Volkswagen ownership - were named after racing drivers who competed in original Bugattis in the 1920s and 1930s, specifically Pierre Veyron and Louis Chiron. This new Tourbillon marks a bit of a change, and not just in the naming strategy. This is the first Bugatti made under the leadership of Mate Rimac, brought in by Volkswagen from his eponymous electric car company to co-own and run Bugatti. The name refers to a very specific type of watch, first made in France in the 1800s, which was designed to counteract the effect of gravity on a watch mechanism so as to make it more accurate. Tourbillons, in the watch world, ever since have been amongst the rarest and most sought-after models, and therefore usually the most expensive. Which seems like an entirely appropriate name for this new Bugatti.

Neil Briscoe - 25 Jun 2024