Key Takeaways
- Bugatti will continue producing combustion engines beyond 2035 and could offer synthetic fuel to do it.
- Small automakers like Bugatti have advantages on compliance rules compared to larger companies.
- Future Bugatti models will also improve on quality.
Bugatti is set to unveil the successor to the Chiron in the next few weeks with its incredible V16 Hybrid powertrain, and if you were worried this would be the last combustion Bugatti, CEO Mate Rimac is here to alleviate your fears. According to Auto Express, Rimac had some exciting information to share recently at the 2024 FT Future of the Car Summit in London about the future of Bugatti that mirrors his recent comments about his namesake brand.
Bugatti
Bugatti was founded as an automaker by an Italian-born designer named Ettore Bugatti in Molsheim, Alsace, when the French city was a German one in 1909. Bugatti created several successful cars for road and racing, but Ettore’s death in 1947 led to the company ceasing operations in 1952 before a short-lived revival in 1963. The brand was revived again in 1987, resulting in the EB110 GT, but the company we know today only appeared in 1998, when Volkswagen Group acquired the brand. In 2005, the Veyron arrived, setting the tone for Bugatti’s contemporary era.
- Founded
-
1909 (Automobiles Ettore Bugatti)
- Founder
-
Ettore Arco Isidoro Bugatti
- Headquarters
-
Molsheim, France
- Current CEO
-
Mate Rimac
He says gas engines are here to stay, and even if penalties are incurred, the brand will go in the direction its customers want. “I don’t see any reason not to make them beyond 2035, we have developed a completely new engine, and we want to use that engine for a while,” he said.
Small Boutique Automakers Have Advantages
Obviously, the first concern is the advent of the Euro 7 regulations that supposedly outlaw the production of combustion engines after 2035, but Rimac says that’s of little concern. “I read the regulations and I don’t see a reason why it would be impossible – the headlines say combustion-engined cars will be banned from 2035, but you read the fine print and it doesn’t say that anywhere – you can still build them, but there might be some penalties.”
Add CarBuzz to your Google News feed.
The Euro 7 rules have recently been updated to include the use of synthetic fuels after 2035, giving the company two avenues for further combustion production. If you can afford a million-dollar hypercar, you’ll most likely be willing to deal with the added fees associated with owning one, whether it be a hefty 50% tax or synthetic fuel that costs $50 a gallon. “You could even make some beautiful Bugatti fuel stations for the homes of owners, using synthetic fuels,” he said as a way to sweeten the deal.
These small automakers are given more leeway when it comes to compliance. It’s going to be interesting to see how the rules regarding them evolve as the Euro rules continue to be revisited every few years as we get closer to the deadline.
Detail Will Be Improved On Future Models
While we don’t think anyone believes Bugattis have poor quality, Rimac knows the quality can be improved substantially. “Everyone expects the quality of a mass-produced car in a low-volume car. People think if you pay 10 times or 100 times more for a car that it has to be better, but that’s not the truth,” he said. “For a normal car, for a BMW 5 Series for example, there will be billions spent, you’ll use more prototypes than the whole production run of a low-volume car to get the quality up.”
Related
Bugatti V16 Chiron Successor Getting 550 KPH Speedometer
A Bugatti gift box shared by YouTuber Marques Brownlee reveals the new Bugatti hypercar will be as intricate as a Pagani, but obviously even faster.
We’ll just have to wait and see exactly how the company has gotten the quality to increase in its new supercar that doesn’t share “one piece” with the Chiron. The vehicle is set to debut on June 20th at the brand’s headquarters in Molsheim, France.
Source: Auto Express
#Mate #Rimac #Give #Rich #Sythfuel #Stations #Combustion #Alive
