Bugatti doesn't put an elephant on the gear selector anymore. Instead, there's a falcon's head — and that's far from the only change. The company has ended production of the W16 Mistral, and the last roadster has just rolled out of the Atelier in Molsheim. Only 99 units were built, each finished to a unique specification. And with this car, the entire road-going history of the W16 engine — the one that powered the Veyron, the Chiron, and now the Mistral — comes to a close.
The final car is finished in a combination of Pearl and Sparkle, with Magnolia and Grey Carbon Matt chosen for the interior. Ettore Bugatti's signature appears on the headrests, the sills, and the trim inside the engine bay — a detail not everyone will notice, but one that says a lot. Built together with Lalique, a crystal “Spirit of the Wind” sculpture sits in the center console. And at the customer's request from the Middle East, the familiar elephant figurine on the gear selector was swapped for a falcon's head. Fitting, for a car that just set a speed record.
Under the hood is the 8.0-liter quad-turbo W16, good for 1,600 hp. At launch, Bugatti quoted a price of €5 million before taxes and options. The company hasn't disclosed what the final, personalized example cost. Not that it matters — the entire run sold out before the public unveiling.
In November 2024, the whole point of the exercise happened: a dedicated W16 Mistral World Record Car hit 453.91 km/h (282 mph) on the test track at Papenburg. The result was verified by SGS-TÜV Saar, and Bugatti earned the right to call it the fastest open-top production car in the world.
Bugatti isn't giving up on 16 cylinders. But the architecture is changing entirely. The upcoming Tourbillon gets a naturally aspirated 8.3-liter V16, three electric motors, and a combined 1,800 hp. Its starting price is set at €3.8 million before taxes. So the end of the Mistral closes out the era of the turbocharged W16 specifically — not the story of Bugatti's extreme multi-cylinder engines as a whole.
