Most expensive Bugatti in the world: La Voiture Noire costs more than $18 million
Published on Jun 08, 2022 at 3:36 PM (UTC+4)
by Louise Cheer
Last updated on Mar 28, 2023 at 1:35 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
The one-of-a-kind Bugatti La Voiture Noire has a price tag of more than $18 million and was once the most expensive new car in the world.
The most expensive Bugatti made its first outing at the Geneva International Motor Show in 2019, marking the car maker’s 110th anniversary.
The La Voiture Noire is inspired by the art deco spirit of the Type 57SC Atlantic, which was created by founder Ettore Bugatti’s eldest son Jean in 1934.
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Jean’s Atlantic mysteriously vanished when it was put on a train to Bordeaux to keep it away from the Nazis in WWII and it was never seen again.
Only four Atlantics were ever made and only one of the La Voiture Noire was produced.
And the price of the La Voiture Noire?
It reportedly costs a cool $18.68 million.
It was the world’s most expensive new car at the time.
But the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail broke that record just this year when it sold for a massive $28 million.
The Bugatti La Voiture Noire, priced at over $18 million, is the most expensive Bugatti in the world. Meanwhile, a hyper-realistic human robot that can speak was built for a staggering $8 million, showing that the creation of advanced human robots is a significant investment in the future of technology.
Who owns the Bugatti La Voiture Noire?
Speculation swirled about who the mystery owner was.
Global superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was thought to be the owner.
So was ex-VW chairman Ferdinand Piech.
The most expensive Bugatti in the world was spotted in November of 2021 on the back of a truck in London.
But the owner is still a mystery and they are definitely not keen on taking their baby out for a spin on public roads full of prying eyes.
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How fast is the Bugatti La Voiture Noire?
The La Voiture Noire has a powerful 16-cylinder, 8.0-liter engine which spits out 1,103 kW/1,500 PS and 1,600 Nm of torque.
It can do 0-100km/h (0-60mph) in 2.5 seconds and has top speed of 420km/h (261mph).
Bugatti spokesperson Tim Bravo told CNBC in 2019 that the Bugatti Divo was “made for corners”, but the La Voiture Noire was a “Grand Turismo”.
Watch Supercar Blondie’s video on the La Voiture Noire below:
It took about two years for it to be finally delivered to its new owner in 2021.
The Le Voiture Noire, much like the modern interior design at the moment, is all about minimalism.
A single dorsal seam down the centerline adds to the illusion that the body was “cast in one piece”.
Its body is made with visible carbon fiber covered in a clearcoat known as “black carbon glossy”.
Bugatti’s director of design Achim Anscheidt spoke to Supercar Blondie’s Alex Hirschi back in 2019.
He shed some light on how Bugatti finds a buyer for exclusive, one-off cars such as La Voiture Noire.
“We think about what we want to celebrate… and we finish the project… and then we show it to a client,” Anscheidt said.
He says if they’re interested then Bugatti would go ahead with a design model.
“The customer will then receive this car two and half years later,” Anschiedt said.
The La Voiture Noire was seen as the beginning of an “haute couture strategy” for Bugatti.
“The Chiron really becomes our entry [model] where there is still a very limited amount of 300 customers worldwide,” Anschiedt said of this philosophy.
The Type 57SC Atlantic: The La Voiture Noire’s ancestor
La Voiture Noire is a tribute to the all-black Atlantic owned by Jean himself, which “disappeared without a trace shortly before the Second World War”.
“It is now considered the automotive equivalent of the Amber Room, one of the greatest mysteries of the automotive world, and as a vehicle of indescribable value,” Bugatti’s website says.
At the time, it was considered “the fastest automobile”.
Its creator, Jean, named it “La Voiture Noire”, which means “the black car”.
There is no trace of this car after 1938.
If it’s ever found, it would likely be the most expensive car of all time (a title currently held by Mercedes).
Experts value the lost Atlantic at more than $107 million.
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Louise Cheer oversees and writes stories about the latest headlines on topics such as automotive, technology, gaming, watches, movies and lifestyle. Louise has been a news editor at Yahoo and Daily Mail in Australia, with more than 10 years of experience in the media industry.
