Remember our article on the two unique Bugatti EB110 cars we published a while ago? Where we talked about probably the two rarest EB110 models in modern automotive history, a blue EB110S LM and a silver EB110S SC GTS-1 … two bespoke race cars built by Bugatti and based on the EB110 SS, only one of each were ever made, making each one unique on her own because they were built with a different purpose in mind. The blue car was specifically built for Le Mans, hence the EB110 LM naming, and she did enter the 1994 edition of the 24h of Le Mans, with a rumored power output of more than 700 PS.
Earlier this year the silver EB110S SC GTS-1 returned to a race track in Dyon after being dormant for 25 years, but not to compete, but to be part of a photoshoot, after that the car would join its blue EB110S LM in the UK, to be taken care of by the specialists at H.R.Owen Bugatti for their annual maintenance, and it seems they haven’t been returned to their owner’s garage just yet … Bugatti Automobiles had the great idea to take their new limited edition model, the Centodiece, which is an homage to the EB110SS, to the Nardò track in Italy and come face to face with these two bespoke built race cars from the past … a meeting of two icons.
The Bugatti Centodiece will be entering production in 2022, but before that happens the prototypes will be taken for multiple test drives, both on the open road, and on the track, and that’s why Bugatti returned to the famous Nardò circuit in southern Italy, a proving ground often used by not only Bugatti but many renowned supercar and hypercar manufacturers, this test track in Apulia has seen many prototypes roar their engines for final dynamic checks before going into production.
The 6.2-kilometer track at Nardò combines several right-left-right corners to be taken at high speeds that allow a perfect refinement of the chassis, this track is very demanding on both driver and car, that’s why it’s a preferred venue, but Lars Fischer, Head of Chassis Testing and Application at Bugatti, takes the testing even further by not only keeping the new Centodiece on the track, but also taking it onto the rounds around Apulia, to get a better understanding of the chassis tuning in real-world traffic, and on roads that aren’t as smooth as a race track.
A team of 20 engineers and drivers took the Bugatti Centodiece to Italy to finalize the new model, experts in chassis tuning and development together with engine, transmission, and bodywork specialists all work together during these grueling tests under the Italian sun, this allows them to verify the car’s performance under high outside temperature while taking her onto the high-speed course at Nardò.
The Bugatti Centodieci will be made by hand right at the atelier in Molsheim, this model is an homage to the legendary EB 110 and it’s also a symbol of Bugatti’s coachbuilding expertise, back in 1998, the EB 110 was a milestone on the road to reviving the Bugatti brand in Molsheim, and now they face each other on the Italian race track, but in nearly 30 years a lot has changed, the EB110 came with 610 PS while today the Centodiece will add almost 1,000 PS to that figure, while the EB110 didn’t have a lot of electronics fitted, the Centodiece has systems that alter the chassis dynamics in real-time.
But for Loris Bicocchi, who was already a test driver in the early 90s, and was effectively involved in the development of the EB 110 from scratch, the biggest difference isn’t the power output or the electronics … it’s the tires, the grip level of modern tires like those on the Centodieci is extremely high, he says, and this allows for high lateral acceleration, now Bicocchi is helping the Bugatti team to develop the Centodiece, especially the chassis setup … so he came full circle, working on the EB110 and now on that cars homage 30 years later.
But only a very select few will be able to enjoy all this hard work, Bugatti will only build 10 units of the Centodiece, deliveries will start in 2022, and they are all sold already … at €8,000,000 each, that’s about US$ 9,500,000 …
