The Bugatti Bolide Is an 1825-HP Lightweight Track Monster
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Since being taken over by the Volkswagen Group in 1999, every modern Bugatti has been a heavy beast. Fast, thanks to their quad-turbo W-16s, but heavy. But Bugatti made its name not just on opulent GT cars, but lightweight race cars. Maybe modern Bugatti can do the same.
The Bolide is a concept for a modern Bugatti lightweight. It takes the all-wheel-drive drivetrain from the Chiron—albeit with a hotter engine tune—and marries it with a featherweight chassis. The projected numbers are hard to conceptualize. One-thousand eight-hundred twenty-five horsepower; a 2733-pound dry weight; a top speed well above 300 mph; a Le Mans lap of 3:07, and a Nürburgring lap of 5:23. So, faster than an LMP1 car and in the league of the Porsche 919 Evo. Madness.
"We asked ourselves how we could realize the mighty W-16 engine as a technical symbol of the brand in its purest form—with solely four wheels, engine, gearbox, steering wheel and, as the only luxury, two seats," Bugatti boss Stephan Winkelmann said in a statement. "Important aspects of our considerations were fine-tuning our iconic powertrain without any limitations as regards the weight-to-power ratio"
Bugatti's W-16 receives four new turbochargers to boost output from 1500 in the Chiron Pur Sport to 1825 for the Bolide. The oiling system is upgraded to deal with high-speed track driving, while a new air-to-air intercooler with a water pre-cooling system keeps intake temperatures in check. The Bolide doesn't even share its basic chassis with the Chiron, instead using a new design that allows for an LMP1-esque reclined seating position. There's also a new push-rod suspension system, F1-style ceramic brakes, and magnesium wheels.
One of the cooler details on the Bolide is the roof scoop. The material its made of changes form as speed rises—at low speed, it's uniform, while at higher speeds, bubbles form on the surface to reduce drag and optimize airflow to the big wing. Bugatti uses an "X" pattern for the headlights, which both denotes the Bolide's experimental nature and pays tribute to Chuck Yeager's Bell X-1 aircraft.
Bugatti notes that the Bolide is no taller than a classic Type 35, the company's most successful race car and one of Ettore Bugatti's signature designs. Invoking the Type 35 is notable here—the Bolide is the first post-War Bugatti to adopt that car's lightweight, high-power ethos. The Bolide represents a huge departure from the brand's current trajectory, but in a way, it's a return to form. Ettore would dig it.
Were it to be put into production, the Bolide would be a track-only hypercar built to FIA safety standards. Bugatti only sent us renderings of the car, but a camouflaged prototype has been spotted testing at Paul Ricard in the South of France.
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