Bugatti unveiled a new high-performance supercar at the Geneva Motor Show on Monday.
The French car maker currently produces only four models — all variations of the famed Bugatti Veyron. It was introduced in 2005 and the Veyron 16.4 Super Sport was named the world’s fastest production car by the Guinness Book of World Records in 2013.
But the Veyron’s era is about to end.
Bugatti says that the new generation, the Chiron, will be a “completely new development.” According to the car maker, it’ll be faster, more powerful and even more expensive, with a base price of €2.4 million ($2.6 million).
“It is part of human nature to cross boundaries and set new records,” Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. President Wolfgang Dürheimer said in a statement. “This striving is also our driving force at Bugatti. The Chiron is the result of our efforts to make the best even better.”
The new model will have 1,500 HP to work with, which is 300 HP more than the record-winning Veyron. The Chiron’s top speed remains to be seen, but it’ll be capped at 420 km/h (260 mph) for road use.
Bugatti — which is part of Volkswagen — will make just 500 of the first Chiron series, and a third of them have already been sold. The company began giving private presentations of the car to “select customers” last fall, and will deliver the new cars this fall.
The VW executive who kept his calm as a protester mocked its emissions scandal during a glitzy media presentation says such stunts are “something that you just have to live with.”
A wrench-wielding prankster dressed up as a VW mechanic crawled up under a display car to feign a repair on a car that marketing chief Juergen Stackmann had just ridden up in at the show Tuesday.
After being interrupted by the protester, Stackmann quipped: “It doesn’t need repairs: It’s a perfect car.” Security guards then whisked away the protester.
Afterward, Stackmann told The Associated Press: “Obviously we know at the moment that we are the brand that attracts a lot of attention — and we have to live with that.”
Volkswagen has admitted that up to 11 million vehicles worldwide may be affected by a diesel emissions-rigging scandal after revelations last fall from the U.S. Justice Department.
Content from the Associated Press is included in this story
