The Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport has reached its halfway point with 30 units having already left its production facility and to celebrate this, the company has decided to showcase its prowess by ‘Drifting the C’.
Touted to have been engineered with superior lateral acceleration and agility via its advanced four-wheel-drive system, the Chiron Pur Sport possesses a furious 8.0-litre quad-turbo W16 engine producing 1,500PS and 1,600Nm of torque.
The Chiron Pur Sport ‘Drifted The C’ was performed under conditions that ensured full safety for the entire team, including the professional development driver who was behind the wheel. It was performed at a track that only Bugatti personnel had access to during the event.
The C-line is both iconic and synonymous with the brand through its styling cues which can be found on Jean Bugatti’s creations including the Veyron and Chiron2.
The line seamlessly elongates the car from its side profile while simultaneously imbuing it with a flow that gives the impression of movement even while at rest and this has been used to great effect in the design from the brand’s earliest creation – the Type 50 right up to the famous Type 57 series.
The C-line was created out of necessity to increase ventilation to the 16 cylinders lined up in a W-configuration which helps clean air reach the engine and a 2.8m trim strip composed of a unique aluminium alloy further defines this line.
Airflow starts getting directed from behind the A-pillar through to the wheel arch before getting pumped out the rear.
The Chiron Pur Sport boasts of an optimised suspension setup which takes into consideration of its 50kg weight reduction and a ‘substantially increased amount of downforce’.
The Pur Sport’s seven-speed dual-clutch transmission has undergone a radical transformation with Bugatti engineers optimizing its numerous components resulting in its gears getting shortened by 15%.
The chassis of the Chiron Pur Sport now possesses 65% (front) and 33% (rear) firmer springs working together with an adaptive damping system for added performance as well as heavily modified camber values (front +115%; rear +150%; camber adjusted to -2.5 degrees). This is said to guarantee even more dynamic handling, increased performance and added agility around bends.
An interpretation of Bugatti’s ‘Form Follows Performance’ ethos, the Chiron Pur Sport grips the road in part due to its lower unsprung mass that’s been realised through the use of lightweight magnesium wheels which has accorded a savings of 16kg.
In a straight line, the Chiron Pur Sport is able to accelerate from 0 to 100kph in 2.3 seconds and 0 to 200kph merely takes just 5.9 seconds. Moreover, the shorter gear ratios allow it to launch from 60 to 120kph in sixth gear in just 4.4 seconds.
With the W16 engine fired into life, the Pur Sport launches off the line, all four tyres smoking as it gathers momentum, shifting rapidly through the gearbox.
The driver turns the wheel and delicately eases the Pur Sport into a drift with a press of the throttle.
As he counter-steers into the turn, tyre smoke begins to bellow out from all four wheel arches.
With minute inputs to both steering and throttle, the driver completes the drift with perfection, leaving a Bugatti C-line written in a large letter on the tarmac.
“The Pur Sport has become a firm favourite with customers because of its focused performance and pure driving characteristics. It was only right that the Pur Sport was the selected Chiron model to honour our iconic signature line with this ambitious C-Drift,” said Bugatti Automobiles president Christophe Piochon.
