Though Bugatti will spend the next few years merrily building W16 engines and stuffing them into variants of its iconic Chiron hypercar, all those cars have already been sold. You have officially missed your chance to order a brand new Bugatti with that incredible 16-cylinder quad-turbo engine. I’m sorry to be the one to tell you. You did have one last shot today, as the final freely-available Bugatti Chiron crossed the block at RM Sotheby’s auction in Paris. But unless you’re the fellow who paid $10.8 million for it, well, it’s all over now.
Pre-sale estimates had it going for $4.6-6 million, but in the end it wound up in the exalted land of eight-figure cars, setting a record as the most expensive new car ever sold at auction. The finality of it all definitely helped, and it certainly didn’t hurt that the hyper-opulent Bugatti Chiron Profilée is a one-of-a-kind example of Bugatti’s flagship.
The Profilée was originally intended to be a series production model that slotted into the Bugatti lineup as a less extreme alternative to the Chiron Pur Sport. However, Bugatti quickly sold out its intended 500-unit production run of Chirons before the Profilée had finished development. Thus, just one pre-series model was completed and placed up for auction. Like all Chirons, it’s capable of ludicrous performance figures. It can sprint to 186 mph in just 12.4 seconds on its way to an electronically limited top speed of 236 mph.
The Chiron Profilée wears an exquisite shade of blu known as Argent Atlantique. It features a unique tail design not seen on any other Chiron, and the lower half of the body creates a two-tone effect with its exposed blue carbon finish. Other one-of-a-kind touches include the front splitter and a larger-than-usual Bugatti horseshoe grille.
The auction result places the Chiron Profilée amidst some of the most valuable Bugattis ever sold. It comes in behind examples like the 1933 Bugatti Type 59 Sports, which sold for $12.68 million in 2020, and the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, which sold for a stratospheric $30 million in 2012.
The sale of the Chiron Profilée marks the end of an era for Bugatti. Combustion fans need not fear, though, for great things are just around the corner.
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