Bugatti Chiron Super Sport debuts – 1,600 PS grand tourer with 440 km/h top speed; priced at RM16 million

Bugatti has unveiled a new model called the Chiron Super Sport, which serves as a counterpart to the Chiron Pur Sport that arrived earlier. Where the latter is more focused on cornering dynamics, the Super Sport is geared with rolling refinement in mind, or as the company puts it, “combining top speed with absolute luxury” to create the “ultimate grand tourer.”

If the name sounds familiar, you’re probably thinking of the Chiron Super Sport 300+ that celebrated the company’s record-breaking top speed run of 490.484 km/h (304.773 mph) in 2019. The new Super Sport shares most of its styling with that limited-run car, including the bespoke front end that features side air curtains to improve airflow to the wheel arches.

The modified face also carries inclined headlamps, while each fender sports nine air holes that not only release the air pressure from the front wheel wells (along with additional outlets), but also pay homage to the EB 110 Super Sport. A set of aluminium wheels in a five-Y-spoke design are exclusive to the Super Sport, and they are available in a diamond-cut option and magnesium construction.

Moving to the rear, you’ll find the biggest similarity to the Super Sport 300+, as the revised bodywork is 25 cm longer to further optimise aerodynamic efficiency. The diffuser also matches the one on the commemorative model, and the same can be said of the stacked tailpipes.

Inside, the Super Sport more closely matches a standard Chiron, with the cabin being decorated with plenty of polished aluminium, fine leather and hints of carbon-fibre. The company describes the living space as “perfectly suited to high-speed continental trips.”

Mechanically, Bugatti says it made a few modifications to the 8.0 litre quad-turbo W16 engine, including the turbochargers, oil pump and cylinder head. The engine’s rpm also gets bumped up by 300 rpm to 7,100 rpm, while peak torque of 1,600 Nm is now accessible across a wider range between 2,000 and 7,000 rpm, rather than up to 6,000 rpm.

The torque output is the same as on the Super Sport 300+, and the engine also serves up a familiar 1,600 PS (1,577 hp or 1,176 kW). Changes were also made to the transmission, with seventh gear now being 3.6% longer – the car actually changes from sixth to seventh at 403 km/h.

The increased grunt makes the Super Sport faster by 7% compared to a regular Chiron in a 0-400 km/h sprint, while the 0-200 km/h times is 5.8 seconds and the run up to 300 km/h takes 12.1 seconds. An electronically limited top speed of 440 km/h is identical to the Super Sport 300+, although without the limiter in place, the car and its Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres can handle speeds of up to 500 km/h consistently, the company says.

Production of the Super Sport will soon start at the company’s facility in Molsheim, France, with deliveries scheduled to take place in early 2022. The asking price, if you’re interested, is 3.2 million euros (around RM16 million) before options and other customisation options thrown in.