Bugatti Divo is a $6M hypercar made for corners, not for mortals
With crazy aero, a lower top speed and an eye-searing interior, the Divo is ready to dance rather than muscle its way up your favorite canyon roads.
It's hard to imagine a situation in which anyone would look at a Bugatti Chiron and say that it needed more performance, but clearly that's just what someone did, because Bugatti went and built the Divo.
What is the Divo, apart from a 'roided out 1,500-horsepower, $5.78 million hypercar that you can't even buy because it's sold out already? Well, while the Chiron was envisioned as the world's greatest grand touring vehicle, the Divo is meant to devour twisty roads with wild abandon. But what did Bugatti do to make that happen?
The Bugatti kicks all of the Chiron's elegance to the curb and replaces it with hardcore aerodynamics.
To start with, it changed the car's aerodynamics package to increase downforce by 198 pounds, while reducing overall vehicle weight by 77 pounds. This, coupled with fancy new tuning for its electronic dampers allow it to corner with lateral acceleration of 1.6g. Those aero changes do have a negative effect on the Divo's top speed though, which is now limited to just 236 miles per hour, down from the Chiron's electronically limited max of 261 mph.
"When I took up my position at Bugatti at the beginning of the year, I soon learnt that our customers and fans were waiting for a special vehicle which would tell a further story for the brand in addition to the Chiron," said Stephan Winkelmann, president of Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. "The Bugatti team was also very eager to implement a project like this."
Bugatti claims that the Divo is a full 8 seconds faster than the Chiron around the Nardo handling circuit -- no mean feat, given the caliber of car we're talking about here. Though Bugatti isn't specific about which Chiron it took there, the standard car or the ludicrously named Chiron Sport.
The Bugatti Divo's interior is nothing if not driver-focused.
"To date, a modern Bugatti has represented a perfect balance between high performance, straight-line dynamics and luxurious comfort. Within the possibilities, we have shifted the balance in the case of the Divo further towards lateral acceleration, agility and cornering," Winkelmann added. "The Divo is made for corners."
The interior of the Divo is a definite departure from the more staid luxury of the Chiron. Where the Chiron is all soft leather and beautifully machined metal, the Divo is brightly colored Alcantara on the driver's side and gray-black Alcantara on the passenger side, leaving little doubt as to who this car is meant for.
Bugatti CEO Stephan Winkelmann unveils the Divo at the Quail Motorsports Reunion.
The crazy people in Molsheim behind the Divo have decided to build just 40 examples of the car, all of which are apparently sold out. Like all modern Bugattis, the Divo bears the name of a respected racing driver. This time it is that of Albert Divo, two-time winner of the grueling Targa Florio race in Italy in a Bugatti Type 35.
With such limited numbers being built, we wouldn't expect to see the Divo on the streets anytime soon. We'll do our best to get that hot-shoed, baritone-voiced Editor-In-Chief of ours behind the wheel once it actually goes into production.
