New Bugatti V16 hypercar set for June 20 debut

Bugatti has locked in June 20 as the day it unwraps its next-generation hypercar that will be powered by an electrified V16 powerplant generating 750kW-plus.

Claimed to draw heavy inspiration from the Type 57 SC Atlantic, Type 35 models and even the enormous Type 41 Royale limo, Bugatti has released a single teaser image of its incoming Chiron replacement that shows off the short front bonnet and the top of its horseshoe-shaped grille.

According to the company, all three past masters lent their DNA to “create a pure and authentic reinterpretation of the Bugatti brand”.

Earlier spy shots of a camouflaged version of the inbound hypercar suggest it will be difficult to spot any evidence of the classics that helped inspire it.

Based on those images, the new model looked like an evolution of the one-off La Voiture Noire that sold for €11 million ($A18m), but will be lower and sleeker.

Just last week, Bugatti released pictures and details of its swansong 1177kW Super Sport L’Ultime – the final car that says farewell to both the eight-year-old Bugatti Chiron and its quad-turbo 8.0-litre W16 that’s also heading for retirement.

The Chiron’s replacement is expected to be powered by a wild metre-long V16 – a considerable 400mm longer than the W16.

Raising more eyebrows, the new engine will do without turbochargers and instead use integrated electric motors within the powertrain to enable it to generate epic power.

Helping develop the electrified part of the powertrain is Croatian all-electric hypercar-maker, Rimac, which is thought to have created an ultra-lightweight battery that will discharge at a higher rate and charge much quicker than existing tech.

British firm Cosworth is also involved in the program, and while there’s no word on just how much power the new Bugatti will produce, it’s thought the new model’s combustion engine will have a capacity of around 8.3 litres and alone pump out upwards of 750kW.

With the electrification, the new V16 should overshadow the outgoing 1177kW Chiron Super Sport while weighing considerably less than that car’s portly 1945kg kerb weight.

The new model is described by Bugatti as “incomparable in every detail, it is a pure embodiment of Bugatti’s DNA, created not just for the present, or even the future – but ‘Pour l’éternité’ [for eternity]”.

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