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Bugatti 16 C Galibier sedan concept debuts

09/14/2009, 12:55 PM

By Mark Kleis

Bugatti has a long history of building sedans and luxury cars, so the debut of the 16 C Galibier Concept is both fitting and expected. The Galibier shares some components and styling with the Porsche Panamera, but undoubtedly receives a massive increase of technology, styling and performance upgrades and changes.

Following the footsteps of the outrageous Veyron, the Galibier features a 16-cylinder motor in a W-configuration displacing a whopping 8.0 liters. And as if that wasn’t enough, engineers also slapped on dual two-stage superchargers 0 replacing the quad-turbocharger setup found on the Veyron. Official horsepower figures have not been disclosed, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see a number approaching 1,000 hp.

Bugatti says the car’s exterior is inspired by the torpedo-like Type 35, while also evoking cues from the Type 57.

Most of the structure is carbon fiber, but the doors and fenders make use of carefully sculpted aluminum. The interior, which has room for four, makes use of similarly exotic materials, albeit of a different variety. The cabin is adorned with the highest quality wood and leather, juxtaposed by an ultramodern LCD center console.

As mentioned, mechanical specifications and performance numbers have not yet been disclosed. Expect the Galibier to go on sale sometime in 2012 – with a pricetag of approximately $1.6 million, according to Bugatti.

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09/14, 2:11 PM

posted by:

GTSR2000

Looks Amazing!

09/14, 2:15 PM

posted by:

Bavarian_818

Speechless!!!

09/14, 2:16 PM

posted by:

motojunkie

So anyone see the original DUNE movie directed by David Lynch? Remember the Guild Navigators, the big ugly things in the tanks who could fold space? Well the front end of this reminds me of that nastiness in that tank.

09/14, 2:22 PM

posted by:

05Z88Path

Jesus. Every Sultan will need one or two of these to go with their palace…its is as OVER THE TOP as over-the-top goes! I can’t call it beautiful, but I’m not sure Bugatti’s are supposed to be. Just extreme and awe-inspiring. This definitely fills both of those shoes quite well…

09/14, 2:28 PM

posted by:

Elvacano

It’s a terminator pamanera !!!!

09/14, 2:31 PM

posted by:

CADDY-V

I don’t like the color, but seriously if you can afford a Bugatti you can paint it what ever color you want.

09/14, 2:41 PM

posted by:

Jas Is Evil

Looks like a GT Continental/Panamera hybrid.

09/14, 2:42 PM

posted by:

trantz

$50,000 starting? Please?

09/14, 2:43 PM

posted by:

davdaking

what a beauty…..

09/14, 2:48 PM

posted by:

And The Winner Is…

Subtle and tasteful.

09/14, 3:08 PM

posted by:

scratchy

Bugatti are the only cars that can make chrome look good.

09/14, 3:30 PM

posted by:

ChuckTown86

^^trantz: I as much as I would love for car to have a starting price of $50K, we all know that we will sooner see pigs fly. We will just have to settle for the Panamera (which IMO is a beautiful car in is own right) while they last. I was hoping for a Veyron with four doors, but this is STUNNING! For beauty sake I hope they do not change a thing.

09/14, 3:49 PM

posted by:

ChuckTown86

I find it funny that most people despise the Panamera, but Bugatti produced a car of similar shape with the much added finesse of what a Bugatti is — highly Exclusive. I am not saying there is not a place for this car, but I am not saying there is not a place for the Panamera. IMO in order of attainable to Exclusive: Audi A8 (competes with Mercedes S, BMW 7, Jag XJ, Lexus LS); Porsche Panamera (competes with Aston Martin Rapide, Maserati Quattroporte); Bentley Mulsanne (competes with Rolls Royce Phantom, Maybach 57/62), and then the Bugatti 16 (in a class of its own).

09/14, 3:58 PM

posted by:

SomeGreek

It has the exaggeration of a monstrosity. As it should.

09/14, 4:02 PM

posted by:

DB9

One Word -> Derivative…

DB9;-)

09/14, 4:04 PM

posted by:

sundi

8 exhaust tips

09/14, 4:05 PM

posted by:

Asher

Bulbous and the chrome sides are just lame. I mean, if this is really what uber-rich people want to drive, let them. Im just glad Im not one of them. Less attractive than a Bentley Continental but of course better looking than a Panamera as anything is.

If your ego is stoked by having ultra-exotic materials in the car your sitting in rather than just quality traditional materials, then I genuinely pity you. Do you buy it to say: “But the car I drive has carbon and alcantra where yours is made of lowly leather”-if so then imo you’d be the most pathetic, needy and insecure person in the world to choose it.

The more of these ridiculous pamper-mobiles I see, the more I pity rich people and their ridiculously over-inflated egos. If its performance-oriented like a Spyker or Reventon, I can dig it but when the purpose is just to be more gaudy than the classless rich guy next to you, I couldnt care less about it.

Me, I’ll just take an Elise/Exige any day for 40k and enjoy the actual art and fun of DRIVING.

09/14, 4:23 PM

posted by:

2TellUTheTruth

Its hot. They could of lower the roofline towards tha rear n throw a ever so slight, well executed, notch on tha back. Still n all, type sweet!

09/14, 4:23 PM

posted by:

johnnycanuck

trantz, just give it time and the Chinese will be happy to sell you one at that price.

09/14, 4:27 PM

posted by:

2TellUTheTruth

Though, tha headlights n tha bumper air intakes, on tha sides, sorta dont blend well together to me — like one r tha other you know — but still it looks tough all n all!

09/14, 4:46 PM

posted by:

cocksterS

It’s not bad. I just don’t think it’s special enough. There’s too much VW group in the design. Nothing about it makes me gasp and sigh the way the Veyron does. For a normal car, that is okay. But this is a Bugatti. Also, the tailpipe octet is really corny.

09/14, 4:58 PM

posted by:

idrinorbarsaku

If god were cool, this is what he would look like!

09/14, 5:10 PM

posted by:

Kid Icarus

Eh….I am not feeling it

09/14, 6:01 PM

posted by:

Samintosh

Oldies beauty…sure!

09/14, 6:29 PM

posted by:

JakeK66

Amazing…. But I find the Panamera amazing too. Be honest, if they made the Panamera a coupe with 928-esque rear end, everyone would love it! I personally like what the Panamera is and love it’s outright amazing interior.

09/14, 6:48 PM

posted by:

jayjc08

The interior really revokes thoughts of a lot of 70’s American float-mobiles, with the simple bag-handle. Doesn’t look like there’s much of a place to rest your hand. And the dashboard is just somewhat silly looking too me. The color reminds me of the cheap plastics they used in the 80’s…

I like the idea of a Bugatti sedan, and I like a lot of the exterior design… but the interior just isn’t doing it for me. Should be about the back seat passengers…

09/14, 7:00 PM

posted by:

MechMatt

Spectacular. Even in two-tone. The interior almost looks too sparse though. Would like to see that LCD integrate into the dash (but flush all the way along, not recessed). The shame is though, as good as this looks (better than the Panamera, that goes without saying) you could probably buy a dozen Panamera’s for one of these.

09/14, 7:19 PM

posted by:

idrinorbarsaku

I love the way the two engine hoods open up!

09/14, 7:24 PM

posted by:

status

My only question is WHERE ARE THE A/C VENTS? Sultan Spenda Al Ottamoney is going to be sweating his balls off!

09/14, 7:24 PM

posted by:

leftwingagenda

love the interior…dig the front end…i like the rear of the panamera better than this, though…this is just too globular, or spherical, or w/e…bulbous, maybe…of course, the panamera and this won’t be cross shopped, but still…

09/14, 7:27 PM

posted by:

ahnuconun

@Sundi: Yes, and judging by that superfluous number of exhaust tips, can you imagine the headers coming off the engine, downpipes and cats? What does a 16-cylinder engine sound like, anyway?

09/14, 8:05 PM

posted by:

QueenLaTonsil

The front end is pretty hot. Doesn’t look like a million bucks, though. Sorta like a slammed X6.

09/14, 8:13 PM

posted by:

beatusmongous

I may be the only one, but I don’t like it. I know the idea is to be over the top, but this is just too much. The back end is extreme Panamera, which looks out of place. The front end has the signature grille, and the two-tone works well there, as well as the hood lines. But the side profile puts Bentley and Panamera together in a not-so-great way. Something just isn’t right. Also, the console in the interior is ridiculous. I love the Veyron interior, and I was expecting something similar here. The only things this and the Veyron interior have in common are the brown leather and the steering wheel. Other than that, it looks like my grandpa’s ‘89 Buick. I don’t know, it just doesn’t feel right to me. I feel like I’d need to step out of it wearing huge sunglasses and waving cigar smoke out of my view, like a scene from a ’70s Vegas Mafia show. I could put a toy dog in the passenger seat, too.

09/14, 8:16 PM

posted by:

beatusmongous

Oh, and Madonna should NOT be “aloud” to adopt again. She probably shouldn’t even be “allowed” to adopt again, either.

09/14, 8:24 PM

posted by:

kingston

Even if I had the money, it’s just worth it. Why does anyone need 1,000HP in a sedan? And, the rear end looks like the Panamera. Pointless….

09/14, 9:11 PM

posted by:

mitzo

It’s a hatch?!

09/14, 9:18 PM

posted by:

xcatchmyshadowx

What a machine, the “UBER-sedan” has arrived! great car!

09/14, 9:22 PM

posted by:

xcatchmyshadowx

the colour scheme reminds me a bit of “phantom of the opera”

09/14, 9:41 PM

posted by:

LunaticRider

Ugly freaking car. Although I love the power it delivers sucks cant afford one anyway.

09/14, 9:49 PM

posted by:

Borat

Lefty. KGB will shoot you as traitor: your beliefs should tell you that this is pure unadulterated right wing capitalistic tool or vehicle!

09/14, 10:48 PM

posted by:

Ketzer

Needs less cowbell.

09/14, 11:14 PM

posted by:

TL

Ehh, I’m not feeling the same vibe here.
Perhaps I don’t have such an exotic taste.

09/14, 11:30 PM

posted by:

johnnycanuck

They could have chromed the bottom half of a 1980 Seville and come up with something just as ugly for about one zillionth of the price.

09/14, 11:34 PM

posted by:

Bosley

I wonder how long it’ll take before this car shows up on Cribs?……. ;) :)

09/15, 12:13 AM

posted by:

leftwingagenda

it’s not a vehicle for the masses, so let it run on spotted owl blood for all i care…ok, ok…i keed, i keed…

09/15, 1:14 AM

posted by:

TW1NTURBO

stunning much better looking than the veyron, give it the 1001 hp

09/15, 1:45 AM

posted by:

atoms

now thats a bugatti

09/15, 2:29 AM

posted by:

JoshyLofty

now THIS is a car.

09/15, 5:55 AM

posted by:

fan

looks like the 1999 concept of the Volkswagen Phaeton, back then called “Concept D”.

try google. compare the rearlights. the front lights. heck, even the color…

09/15, 6:49 AM

posted by:

AutoCritical

Wow – I like the crease along the roof – how that themes off into a feature on the interior at the rear vision mirror. Of course, the bonnet opens with the old-style cabinet!
Although initially thinking it would be cheesy, this car can pull off that intense chrome affect. It has nice clean surfaces for it too so it doesn’t look messy.
The front and rear meet up really well, with a clean surface and design that is also reflected in the interior, that doesn’t come off overly simplistic with the risk of being cheap.

It has a beautiful interior that lets the wood work stand out as a natural feature.

09/15, 7:06 AM

posted by:

MajorDonWest

Nice interior. Very nice…

09/15, 9:21 AM

posted by:

AutoCritical

I can’t get over that spine and how it flows into the interior! http://bit.ly/M67a0

09/15, 2:07 PM

posted by:

aesir

I sort of see the Panamera similarities, but if you were to put the two next to each other, I think there are some drastic differences between proportions.

09/16, 12:56 PM

posted by:

scratchy

we should be thankful one company still makes such things. like the old pre ww2 over the top cars. soon all cars will be nothing more than moving electric appliances. i’m happy i still caught the swansong of the fossil burning automobiles, the real motorcars.

09/16, 8:55 PM

posted by:

Rafa LL

F430 Scuderia front air inlets, revised Panamera back, Audi Pikes Peak Concept front end.
Bugatti is the best of the Best. Seriously.

09/16, 10:38 PM

posted by:

reedfast

i wonder if it can fly?

09/17, 4:24 AM

posted by:

Stinky007

Why is everyone so excited of this blandly designed car?
I don’t see anything worth looking when I see this car. It composed out of different elements taken from VAG’s more popular brands, something that could hardly be considered “high class”.
I’m also starting to get bored with the entire “retro” design theme everybody is keen on nowadays! Using old design queues gets old really fast as unusual things like the spine and the split hood were used on old cars for a reason. Using these design elements on a new car is almost as stupid as putting wooden wheels with iron tires (with bling-bling proportions of course) or a hole and a crank under the grill just to be a bit more “retro”. Oh yeah, there’s not enough chrome on this car, we need mooaar chrome!
As for the engine, if it took 4 turbos to get 1000bhp out of that unit, I don’t think a single supercharger would manage to do the same. My guess would be that this car would have around 800bhp, enough to have more than any other car in it’s class. Of course, the engine could actually have 1000bhp if they chrome it!

09/17, 10:34 AM

posted by:

scratchy

Stinky007 , go and stink somewhere else.

09/17, 2:08 PM

posted by:

CHEF95

This is dead sexy and the Panemera is a pile of wank the most ugly car i have ever seen!

09/17, 4:45 PM

posted by:

Rafa LL

Remember that the Veyroncame out better looking than the Veyron Concept. Exactly.
This thing is astonishing.

09/17, 10:49 PM

posted by:

astonjt

Well Im not to hot about the rear… It looks like and expensive wagon to me. I could see my selfish 50 year old money wasting wife driving this insted of my wannabe rich ass. And I better be flying my F22 Raptor if she gets this over priced shopping cart.

09/22, 6:40 AM

posted by:

gastavas Mark

too good

01/21, 9:25 PM

posted by:

Allen Morgan

Too bad it looks like they pimped out the “UGLY” Porsche Panamera, for the price of one of these you don’t borrow from a much cheaper car fellas.

 
 
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