Twenty years. That is how long Bugatti’s outrageous 8.0-litre quad-turbo W16 engine has powered some of the most unhinged road cars ever built. The last chapter has now closed, with the final unit of the track-only Bugatti Bolide leaving the Molsheim gates. The engine that started life in the Veyron back in 2005 heads into retirement with its chin held rather high.
The Bolide was always meant to be a tribute. A tribute to engineering excess. A tribute to Bugatti’s motorsport past. And now, a tribute to the end of the W16 era.
Only 40 examples exist, and the last one is a particularly sentimental send-off. Finished in a deep two-tone blue inspired by the legendary Type 35 racing car, it joins other Bugattis in the same private collection, including the final Veyron Grand Sport. Clearly, someone likes matching sets.
Inside, the same blue theme continues with Lake Blue Alcantara and lighter contrast stitching. It is dramatic but tasteful in that familiar Bugatti way.
Underneath the colour, carbon fibre dominates. The Bolide shares its core monocoque with the Chiron and Divo, but that is where the similarities quietly end. Everything else is tuned for the tra, including the aero package that looks ready to harvest small wildlife if it comes too close.
And then there is the engine. Unburdened by road-car rules, it produces 1,600bhp and 1,600Nm. The numbers barely sound real, yet the Bolide proved its potential during testing. At Le Mans, test driver and former 24 Hours winner Andy Wallace saw 350kmph down the Mulsanne Straight. Impressive for a car that weighs as much as a large lunch compared to most hypercars. Official figures claim 0 to 100kmph in 2.2 seconds, which feels like physics politely stepping aside.
In its most aggressive prototype tune, the Bolide made an unbelievable 1,825 bhp. Bugatti says tyres would last 60 km at full power. They were probably not joking.
Simulations suggested a Nürburgring lap time of 5 minutes and 23 seconds. Bugatti never ran the lap officially, but the maths alone is enough to make seasoned drivers blink twice.
The W16 may be gon, but it leaves behind a portfolio of numbers that will take serious effort to match. The Bolide is a bookend to an era of internal-combustion excess that will probably never return.
Some goodbyes are quiet. This one could be heard from across continents.
