The French manufacturer unveiled its last gas-only convertible that it hopes would be the world's fastest.
Bugatti has unveiled what would be a piece of automobile history with the W16 Mistral, the brand's last model that's powered by the legendary 8.0-liter quad-turbocharged 16-cylinder engine. The W16, which has a 1,600-horsepower and a $5 million price tag, was immediately sold out.
Bugatti said it would only produce 99 Mistrals and all of them were already sold out by the time the supercar was shown to the public in Carmel, California on Friday, CNN reported. The Bugatti W16 Minstral may appear to be just an open-topped version of the Chiron supercar at first glance, but it does have a number of differences in terms of design.
Bugatti Wants the W16 Minstral to Be the World's Fastest Convertible
In announcing the highly anticipated W16 Mistral, Bugatti said, "There can only be one goal in mind: to become the fastest roadster in the world once more." But the French supercar maker has not announced what the expected fastest speed of the upcoming W16 Mistral will be.
Previously, Bugatti's fastest convertible in the world was the Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse cabriolet, which ran up to 254 miles an hour on a Volkswagen test track in Germany in 2013. Three years later in 2016, the top speed record for convertibles was taken by the Hennessey Venom F5 Roadster, which holds the record to this day.
The Mistral to Be the Last One Powered by Bugatti's 16-Cylinder Engine
Bugatti is closing a chapter in its history with the W16 Mistral, as it will be the last model to have the popular W16 16-cylinder engine. Bugatti-Rimac CEO Mate Rimac confirmed that future Bugatti models will be hybrids. The same engine that is in the last 99 W16 Mistral cars is the very same one in the Chiron Super Sport that reached speeds of almost 305 mils per hour.
In terms of its looks, Bugatti's W16 Mistral was inspired by the classic 1934 Bugatti Type 57 Roadster Grand Raid, looking at one model that is housed in the Louwman car museum in the Netherlands. The W16 Mistral features a sleek angled V-shaped windshield with humps behind the seats, while the front features headlights made of four light bars.
FOX News reported that Bugatti is planning an attempt at breaking the 254.04 miles per hour record for open-top cars that was set by the Veyron Super Sport Vitesse. Bugatti's W16 Mistral has no formal hardtop but will arrive with an emergency cover.
The W16 Mistral's body was also re-engineered to address the large opening which takes in up to 70,000 liters of air every minute when the super car is at full throttle. The Bugatti W16 Mistral is set to be delivered to customers in 2024 from its manufacturing hub in Molsheim, France.
This isn't the first time Bugatti sold out a car model as in 2021, the company experienced a record-setting year after selling out the Chiron, which arrives to customers this year. CNET reported that 150 customers ordered and personalized a Bugatti in 2021, with 60% of customers being newcomers. In November 2021, only 40 out of the 500 Chirons were available.
