Join me for PT #2 of Bugatti's fascinating history. Subscribe to The Bad Blonde Car History for more automotive history content! #Bugatti #Bolide #thebadblonde It was in 1987 that Italian entrepreneur Roman Artioli purchased the rights to Bugatti. Quickly he went to work creating a beautiful manufacturing plant in Italy and design plans for the new Bugatti revival model, the Bugatti EB110. Who were the designers behind the initial concept before they would have conflicts with Artioli and skirt out the back door? Paolo Stanzani and Marcello Gandini, two famous designers of the Lamborghini Miura and the Countach. Nicola Materazzi would pick up the button and finish the EB 110. The EB 110 was ground breaking in style and one of breathtaking supercars that came out of the nineties along with the Jaguar XJ220, Lamborghini Diablo, Ferrari F50, and the McLaren F1. Powering the Bugatti EB110 was a 3.5litre, 5-valve per cylinder making it a 60-valve, quad turbocharged 60 degree v12 powering all four wheels through a six speed manual transmission. Materazzi served as chief designer for the Ferrari F40 and the Ferrari 288GTO. In 1991 Bugatti would unveil the EB 110 in France on the celebration of 110 years after Ettore’s day of birth. Just six months later they would introduce the EB 110 Super Sport, a more powerful and lighter version by 330lbs. The Super Sport could reach 221mph. The EB 110 Super Sport would garner a great deal of publicity when famous F1 drive, Michael Schumacher, purchased a yellow one…. BUT that would bite them in the rear when he crashed it and then blamed then on “inadequate brakes”.. It was repaired and he kept it till 2003. In 1993 Artioli would purchase Lotus Cars from General Motors and they would present to the public the EB112 prototype saloon… which I don’t find to be quite attractive. Roman Artioli’s Bugatti reign would hit hard times 1995 resulting in bankruptcy, a combination of the 1990s recession and strain caused by the purchase of Lotus Cars. Fast forward to 1998, Volkswagen Group acquires the Bugatti brand and jumps right in to creating a concept car, the EB 118. They commission gamed designer, Giorgetto Giugiaro, the man mostly credited for popularizing the wedge shape. Homeboy did the Iso Grifo, the DMC DeLorean, and the Lotus Esprit. The would introduce the EB118 powered by a w-18 engine, the EB 218 and 18/3 Chiron. In 2005, Bugatti went to work assembling its first regular production car, the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 powered by a 8 liter quad turbocharged w16 engine at it’s original Bugatti factory location in Molsheim, France! In 2010, the Veyron Super Sport took the title of fastest production vehicle of all time with a speed of 267mph on the Ehra-Lession track in Germany BUT that was in dispute for a bit of time because when sold the Veyron had an electronic limiter of 258mph. That sorted through that somehow, and Veyron took the title and maintained it for seven years till taken by the Koenigsegg Agera RS. In 2016 we would see Bugatti Chiron would make headlines at the Geneva Motor Show. Based on the Bugatti Vision Gran Turismo and named after the great Monegasque racer Louis Chiron. Chiron was one of the most successful Bugatti drivers of his time. He was not born into privilege. Chiron made his way to the top of the racing scene through skill and charm. He was a dance partner for the wealthy ladies lounging about at the Hotel de Paris. The Veyron quad-turbocharged W16 engine with multiple updates was carried over to the Chiron. Just like the Veyron, the Chiron features a carbon fibre body structure, independent suspension, and all wheel drive system. At a base price of 2.4 million, the first 200 of the Chiron were sold before the first one was even delivered! Two years later Bugatti would reveal a 40lb lighter track focused and stiffer supension, Chiron Sport. There would be a handful of Chiron variants: 2019- Chiron Super Sport 300+ - with only 30 examples created powered by a 1,600 PS (1,175 kW; 1,580 hp) quad-turbocharged W16 engine 2019 - Bugatti La Voiture Noire –nod to the design of the type 57 SC Atlantic 2022- Chiron Pur Sport - a handling-focused model which will be limited to 60 units. Revealed at the 2019 Geneva International Motor Show, the Bugatti Divo named after Albert Divo a Bugatti Racer of the 1920s who took victory twice at the Targa Florio. Only 40 units of the track focused Divo were made, powered by 8.0 L (488 cu in) quad-turbocharged W16.. Only available via dealer special invite and sold out on the first day. . Bugatti announced they would produce it in December of 2020. Reported to be their last car powered by their iconic 8liter w16 engines and only 40 units produced. Le Bolide comes from the French term Le Bolide meaning the race car.