Bugatti has a tradition: every Geneva Motor SHow edition has to be marked with a world premiere. This year, the exclusive brand is offering a Sport version of its 1,500 PS super sports car two years after its world debut at the Geneva International Motor Show.
The Chiron Sport benefits from a new dynamic handling package. The Bugatti developers have defined a stiffer suspension. This includes a new control strategy for the shock absorbers, which react 10 percent more stiffly than on the Chiron on average. The steering has also been modified. These new settings only take effect in the Handling mode of the Chiron Sport, which is therefore distinguished from the EB mode more clearly for the driver.
In addition to these changes, the rear-axle differential has been optimised and the car now features a Dynamic Torque Vectoring function that distributes torque individually to the wheels on each side.
One of the modifications which make the Chiron Sport more nimble is a weight reduction of about 18 kilograms, thanks to the use of new lightweight parts. The greatest savings were possible as a result of the new lightweight wheels, together with increased use of carbon fibre, for example for the stabiliser, the intercooler cover or the newly developed windscreen wipers. The Chiron Sport also features lighter glass in the rear window and a new, lighter exhaust deflector.
The windscreen wiper arms developed by Bugatti for the Chiron Sport are an interesting technical detail. This is the first production car to feature windscreen wiper arms made from carbon fibre. The wiper arm tips, which are made from aluminium, are produced by a weight-saving 3-D printing process. This means that the new carbon fibre wipers are 77 percent or 1.4 kg lighter than their predecessors.
At first glance, the Chiron Sport can be recognised by its new “Course” alloy wheel rims and the new exhaust deflector, which has four round tailpipes instead of the rectangular design used on the Chiron. In addition, the Sport version has a number of design features that underline its identity as a Chiron Sport. For example, the engine starter button and the driving mode selector knob on the steering wheel as well as the marketing plate have an anodised black finish, the “Sport” logo is in evidence on the door sill strips and there is an insert on the central console with an embroidered “Chiron Sport” logo.
The vehicle body has a classic duo-tone colour scheme. The A-colour at the rear of the vehicle is determined by visible grey carbon; Italian Red paintwork at the front represents the B-colour. Apart from red, the colours available are “French Racing Blue”, the silver tone “Gris Rafale” and a dark grey “Gun Powder”. A red “16” is positioned prominently on the black-painted grid of the radiator grille – referring to the number of cylinders which gives the Chiron engine its unique position.
Including this optional colour and trim package, the Chiron Sport on show in Geneva costs €2.98 million net (US market: US$3.672 million gross), which probably makes it the most expensive production car on display at this year’s show.
