What is more desirable in a sports car? How fast does it move or how does it move when fast? Bugatti Chiron Pur Sports tells us, it’s the latter.

First glimpse: Drinking all the lights dancing on it, the new Bugatti Chiron assumed centre stage, never left to feel lonely for a moment, and yet not thirsting for attention I am sure –this edition was revealed globally in March before the pandemic marched all over. Painted yellow and black, this Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport was a departure from the blue and black we have identified with the Chiron ever since the original was launched. The website images feature the blue and black version, which is why you see it here too. The ‘number’ 16 painted on the grille announces the number of cylinders it hides in that 8.0L marvel spinning out 1600 Nm torque with an output of 1500 hp. The Pur Sport is not really about more power, so these figures are unchanged but the tachometer has pushed its 6700 rev band by an extra 200!

Why Chiron Pur Sport? – President of Bugatti

“We spoke to customers and realised they wanted a vehicle that is geared even more towards agility and dynamic cornering. A hypersports car that yearns for country roads with as many bends as possible. An unadulterated, uncompromising driving machine. Consequently, the vehicle is called Chiron Pur Sport1”, explains Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti. “By cutting the weight by 50 kilogrammes while simultaneously boosting the downforce and configuring an uncompromising, sporty chassis as well as suspension setup, the Chiron Pur Sport1 boasts incredible grip, sensational acceleration and extraordinarily accurate handling. It’s the most uncompromising yet agile Bugatti of recent times.”

What does the number stand for? Read my article on ‘Bugatti’s lucky number.

Compared with the Chiron and the Chiron Super Sport 300+?

Starting with a fact of irony, the top speed of Chiron is 420 kmph but it climbs down to 350 kmph in the new Pur Sport – that is the kind of down force that the new aerodynamic configuration adds while the substantially reduced weight improves agility.

80% of the transmission has been renewed and gear ratios have been brought closer in every gear, making shifts quicker and driving more exhilarating even at ‘regular’ speeds. High performance Michelin tyres using a novel material mix for extreme grip while the chassis and suspensions have been primed for faster bends. The Chiron Pur Sport focuses on tangibly improved performance across all speeds. In contrast, the Chiron Super Sport 300+ as the name suggests is the record-breaking car that has broken the 300 miles per hour speed barrier for the first time.

Attaining ‘Pur Sport’

The Chiron Pur Sport is lighter by 50 kg and wears its secret on its sleeves – plenty of carbon fibre, titanium, magnesium and aluminium. One of the most impressive features in the new Pur Sport edition are what Bugatti calls ‘aero blades’ – two rings that fit around the wheel to suck air from inside towards outside slicing it the direction of the side air intakes in the rear, which in turn cools the oil compartments 6% better. This is the first time ever that a wheel carries the tech to improve aerodynamics for improved downforce and cooling – truly worthy of an enhanced-performance-focused hypercar. The other feature that caught my fancy was the futuristic titanium exhausts. The dual exhaust tips look complex enough and cannot be produced in the traditional way. So Bugatti has used Titanium. Just as they have used magnesium for their wheels, sized 20” in the front and 21” in the rear.

Listen to (and see) all of this being explained by Frank Heyl, the Deputy Design Director at Bugatti, as he patiently answers my questions and demonstrates these extraordinary features. Watch it in the above window or watch on YouTube/Drivemeonline.

THE CHANGES IN BRIEF

• New chassis set-up: firmer springs, new dampers and bushings
• New magnesium wheels with carbon blades, new Michelin Sport Cup 2R tyres
• New ESC Sport Plus driving mode: lateral acceleration up to 1,6 g
• New gearbox: 15% shorter ratios, elasticity improved up to 45%
• Engine output: 1.500 HP at 6.900 rpm, 1.600 Nm from 2.000 to 6.000 rpm
• Acceleration enhanced: 0-100 km/h in 2,3”, 0-200 km/h in 5,5”, 0-300 km/h in under 12”
• Reduced unsprung mass: power to weight ratio improved to 1,19 kg/HP (2,62 lb/HP)

Designed to boost confidence

The design department focused on giving the visage of the new Chiron Pur Sport a purposeful, dynamic expression. The aesthetically enhancing lines are mostly aerodynamically oriented – like the very wide air inlets and an enlarged horseshoe panel at the bottom that serve as perfect radiator air outlets. The splitter extends noticeably from the front, adding to the wide presence and generating maximum downforce.

A new optional split paintwork design has been developed for the Chiron Pur Sport – the bottom third of the vehicle features exposed carbon fibre to make the vehicle seem even lower – why, from the sides, these dark surfaces seem to be merging with the road!

The vehicle’s rear spoiler spanning 1.90 metres generate great downforce, and the striking diffuser also significantly boosts the vehicle’s aerodynamics. Angled wing mounts form a large X in conjunction with the rear apron, a feature that is inspired by elements of science fiction and motorsport. Doing away with the hydraulic component of the otherwise automatically extending spoiler reduces its weight by ten kilogrammes. Rounding off the design is an extremely lightweight and highly temperature-resistant exhaust tailpipe made of 3D-printed titanium.

Why 3D-printing and why titanium?

The design is rather intricate and, more importantly, very thin. The inside exhuast pipe is only .9 mm thick – (watch the video to hear it sound like a surgical instrument!) which is way short of the mandatory 2.5 mm radius required by regulation to render it less sharp and dangerous to pedestrians. So Bugatti has created an outer pipe with what looks like filigree work on the exhaust! Apart from looking good, they help separate hot exhaust fumes away from the carbon fibre keeping the expensive material safe. The complex exhaust tip is etched layer by layer by laser, from a stack of titanium power. The use of titanium helped the design team save weight in the rear – because a mid-engined car needs weight balance favouring the front.

The deliberately raw interiors too have one mantra in the redesigned Chiron – lightness. Alcantara guarantees an ideal grip on the steering wheel and improves the side support on seats – even at extreme lateral acceleration levels, which the Chiron Pur Sport is ready for, with an added sport mode. All trim and controls are made exclusively of either black, anodised aluminium or titanium.

The first ever wheels that create down force

The wheels are cast in magnesium and features optional aero blades for the Pur Sport. They add 200 gm to each wheel, but ironically adding weight in this case improves the performance of the car. Arranged in a ring, the blades guarantee ideal wheel ventilation – cooling the brakes – while also boosting aerodynamics. While the vehicle is in motion, the rings pull out the air outwards from the inside of the wheels, and the profile of the rings channel it towards the rear. This invention prevents adverse turbulence in the wheel area and also improves the flow across the side of the vehicle. A special cover on each of the five wheel nuts minimises turbulence and adds a final visual touch to the wheel’s design. The wheels and associate components has reduced 19 kg in total, which adds to the better grip and control. Watch VIDEO in which Frank Heyl, the Head of Exterior Design obliges to explain the wheel tech for you.

Bugatti and Michelin developed the new Bugatti Sport Cup 2 R tyre in 285/30 R20 dimensions at the front and 355/25 R21 at the rear to match the new Aero wheel design. A modified tyre structure and a rubber mix that creates more grip boosts the vehicle’s lateral acceleration by 10% to for quicker cornering.

Uncompromising chassis and suspension setup

Bugatti says the chassis and suspension have been reconfigured for winding roads without affecting comfort adversely. 65% firmer springs at the front and 33% firmer springs at the rear, an adaptive damping control strategy geared towards performance as well as modified camber values (minus 2.5 degrees) guarantee even more agile and quicker performance in in bends. Besides, carbon-fibre stabilisers at the front and rear minimise roll. There is a 19kg weight-saving happening in this part of the car – 16 kilogrammes among the four wheels, two kg on the titanium brake pad base panels and a kilogram on brake discs. Less weight results in more grip and more comfort, as adaptive dampers need to deal with lower masses and wheels are able to maintain road contact more easily, as connection between chassis, suspension and body is 130% firmer at the front and 77% firmer at the rear.

Apart from the four familiar EB, Motorway, Handling and Sport drive modes, the the new Chiron edition features a Sport + drive mode to “make this enhanced performance more emotionally tangible”. On dry race tracks, the traction control system kicks into action much later in the new mode designed for skilled cornering experts, making it possible for drivers to adapt their signature driving style even to faster corners – whether they wish to keep razor-sharplines from the book or to drift along!

Same output. New transmission.

The true mark of a great driving machine isn’t speed. It is the skill of handling challenges at speed. And so the power output of the 8.0-litre W16 engine of the Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport is unchanged at 1500 horsepower and 1600 newton metres of torque, but the transmission has been revised across 80% of its components. The overall gear ratio has been configured 15% closer together for even more dynamic handling with quicker power availability. Especially when coming out of corners, the Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport can pick up speed even more aggressively with the added grip as well as the more direct chassis and suspension. However, interestingly, unleashing the full power now gets the car to 350 kmph instead of 420, thanks to the vastly increased downforce generated by the new rear spoiler.

At the same time, Bugatti has increased the maximum engine speed of the W16 unit by 200 rpm to 6,900 rpm. This, along with the closer gear ratio enables much easier and elastic shifts up or down gears. So, the Chiron Pur Sport accelerates from 60 to 120 km/h almost two seconds faster than the Chiron.Likewise, here is a comparison of acceleration between Chiron and Chiron Pur Sport (figures in brackets) – 0-100 km/h in 2,3” (2.4”), 0-200 km/h in 5,5” (6.5”), 0-300 km/h in under 12” (13.6 sec)

Production of the Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport will start in the second half of 2020. Limited to 60 units, at three million euros (13.48 million dirhams) excluding VAT.

sketch: Frank Heyl, images: supplied