Bugatti unveils the Divo in California

With the Divo, the French luxury brand has developed a super sports car tuned for agility, nimbleness and optimum handling performance on winding roads. It is powered by Bugatti's iconic 8.0-litre W16 engine with a power output of 1,479bhp. The aerodynamics of the model have been intensively fine-tuned and the suspension and chassis settings have been modified.

As a result, the Divo is 35kg lighter and has 90kg more downforce than the standard Chiron. The lateral acceleration of the Divo has been boosted to 1.6g. Its maximum speed is limited to 380km/h.

The Divo can lap the Nardo handling circuit in southern Italy eight seconds faster than the Chiron. The series will only consist of 40 vehicles. Upon the start of presentations to selected customers, the strictly limited small series, with a net unit price of €5 million ($7,939,188), sold out immediately.

With the Divo, Bugatti is also reviving its coachbuilding tradition. In its first few decades, the French luxury brand had considerable success with bodies built to its own design and installed on existing chassis.

The supercar is named after Albert Divo, a French racing driver who was a two-time winner of the famous Targa Florio race on the mountainous roads of Sicily with Bugatti in the late 1920s.

"When I took up my position at Bugatti at the beginning of the year, I soon learnt that our customers and fans were waiting for a special vehicle, which would tell a further story for the brand in addition to the Chiron," said Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. "The Bugatti team was also very eager to implement a project like this."