Before Bugatti retires the venerable W16 powerplant, the company is sending it off in style with a limited production run of coachbuilt cars. The Mistral, an open-top roadster named for a winter wind that blows through Mediterannean France, is powered by the top-level 1,600 horsepower version of the quad-turbo W16. The chassis is that of the Chiron, although the two cars share no styling cues. Bugatti engineers strengthened key areas of the car to offset the missing roof, resulting in a structure that’s just as rigid as before. Inside are new seats, with a gear selector topped with an amber insert of Rembrandt Bugatti’s “dancing elephant” sculpture. Bugatti will build 99 Mistrals, the last street-legal car to carry the W16.
