Bugatti stunned the automotive scene at March's 2019 Geneva International Motor Show with the unveiling of the $12.4 million La Voiture Noire, a one-off hypercar based on the bones of a Bugatti Chiron and inspired by a legendary Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic that went missing in the 1930s.
It turns out the car wasn't a commission from a customer, like most one-off cars offered by Bugatti's rivals, but rather an internal project that Bugatti has been considering since the days of the Veyron. Bugatti dreamt up the car first, then offered it for sale.
That's the plan for all future Bugatti one-offs and low-volume cars, the brand's design boss, Frank Heyl, revealed to Bloomberg in an interview published on Friday.
“To have a customer coming to say, 'I have this or that car in my mind,' that’s not how we work,” Heyl said. “When you talk about coach-built cars, it goes the other way around, it has to come from us.”
The main reason, Heyl explained, is to ensure the projects don't miss financial and time constraints.
Heyl also revealed in his interview with Bloomberg that Bugatti is planning to offer many more coach-built cars, since the demand is there. He said there were hundreds of people globally willing to pay up big to own a one-off or low-volume Bugatti. Often, they already own one or more Bugattis. For instance, to be eligible for one of the 40 Divos Bugatti is building, buyers needed to already own a Chiron.
