Bugatti W16 Mistral 2024

Mistral is not the name of a former racing car; it refers to the wind that blows across southern France. Bugatti also states that the large air intakes behind the occupants can channel approximately 70,000 liters of air per minute to the engine at full load. Their position also helps make the W16’s sound especially prominent in the open cockpit.

Bugatti planned a total production run of 99 W16 Mistral cars. At the time of its unveiling, the announced price was €5 million before taxes and personalization. The entire allocation had already been sold when the model was shown publicly in 2022. First deliveries were scheduled for 2024, while production was expected to begin at the Molsheim atelier after the final testing phase. Bugatti subjected the roadster to durability, safety, homologation and high-speed evaluation. This very limited production volume places the Mistral among Bugatti’s highly collectible, hand-finished cars rather than within a conventional regular-production range.

Automotive publications have generally described the W16 Mistral as a dramatic conclusion to the W16 era. Top Gear praised its build quality, immense performance and the character of its powertrain, while also pointing to its price and extreme rarity. The model gained further attention through a record attempt at Papenburg, Germany, on November 9, 2024. A Mistral-based record car reached 453.91 km/h, or 282.04 mph, becoming, according to Bugatti and several established automotive publications, the fastest open-top car ever recorded. That result applies to the specially prepared record car and should not be confused with the 420 km/h production specification listed for the road-going model.