--- title: "Modern Bugatti Built Its Reputation on the W16. Now, It’s Going Away" date: "2026-07-18" modified: "2026-07-18" authors: - name: "Stephen Edelstein" job_title: "Weekend Editor" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/stephen-edelstein" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/bugatti-built-its-modern-reputation-on-the-w16-now-its-going-away" categories: - "Bugatti News" - "News" - "News by Brand" --- # Modern Bugatti Built Its Reputation on the W16. Now, It’s Going Away ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *\Bugatti\* The literal engine that powered [Bugatti]() out of the history books and into the modern world of record-breaking supercars is no more. On Thursday, Bugatti announced that the final [W16 Mistral]() had left the factory, marking the end of production of the unique engine used in every Bugatti since the brand's revival by the [Volkswagen]() Group at the turn of the century. Like that revival, the quad-turbocharged 8.0-liter W16 was the brainchild of former VW Group CEO Ferdinand Piëch, who also pushed for the group's purchases of [Bentley]() and [Lamborghini](). According to the official story, even before deciding to revive Bugatti, Piëch daydreamed about a massive engine, sketching a naturally aspirated 18-cylinder behemoth made from three [VW VR6]() blocks while riding a Shinkansen high-speed train across Japan. ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* It wasn't easy to talk Piëch out of anything, but it's a good thing someone made the effort here. After VW bought the rights to the Bugatti name (following a failed attempt at revival that produced the [EB110]() and the aborted [EB112 sedan]()), the goal was to slap the horse-collar grille on a car with 1,000 metric horsepower. The complex W18 would have displaced 6.2 liters and made just 547 hp, so it was swapped for the forced-induction W16 design that was first tested in 2001. That engine powered the [Veyron]() to production-car speed records in both initial 16.4 form (253 mph) and later Super Sport guise (267 mph). A heavily updated version powered the Chiron to its own collection of records, including a 304-mph top speed for the specially developed Super Sport 300+ version that [broke the 300-mph barrier]() for production cars. ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* ![Final Bugatti W16 Mistral]() *Bugatti* Bugatti didn't plan on making a Chiron roadster, but the automaker never misses an opportunity for a high-dollar, limited-edition model. So to give the W16 a proper sendoff, it launched a [crash development program]() to create the Mistral. The $5 million roadster debuted at 2022 Monterey Car Week, and set a [new speed record for open-top cars]() (282 mph) in 2024, propelled by a 1,578-hp version of the venerable W16. The first of 99 customer cars was delivered in 2025. The last of those cars wears a subtle two-tone livery of Pearl and Sparkle paint, "the last of its kind" script throughout, and a dashboard plaque marking it as the final W16-powered Bugatti. The divide between one era and the next is rarely this neat. Just days before the last Mistral was completed, Bugatti held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for La Manufacture, the factory that will build its next supercar. The [Bugatti Tourbillon]() still has 16 cylinders, but they're now arranged in a more conventional "V" instead of the "W" layout that was once a VW Group calling card [at the behest]() of CEO Mate Rimac. ## Author Stephen has always been passionate about cars, and managed to turn that passion into a career as a freelance automotive journalist. When he's not handling weekend coverage for The Drive, you can find him looking for a new book to read. ### Author social links [Twitter]()