Bugatti sells some of the planet's fastest, most expensive, and most exclusive cars. For decades, the French automaker has produced cars that have reshaped performance standards, set world records, and pushed the bounds of the most exclusive segment in the automotive world. While Bugatti's cars from the last two decades have mostly been remixes of either the Veyron or Chiron, they have a few things in common - they've all been two-door hypercars chasing enormous top speeds.
However, before Bugatti shocked the world with the Veyron - the world's first 1,000-hp car, it had teased the idea of a ludicrous sedan with an eighteen-cylinder engine up front, and it seemed as if Bugatti would imminently apply its hypercar formula to the super-luxury sedan template. It never happened, but a pair of awesome concept cars - a coupe and a sedan - reminds us of what could have been.
This article focuses on the Bugatti EB 118 and Bugatti EB 218 concept cars, which never reached production. The Bugatti 16C Galibier sedan concept only appeared more than a decade later in 2009, after the Veyron had already been on sale for several years, so it's not included here.
The Bugatti EB 118
1998 Bugatti EB 118 Concept Blue Front Angled View
Bugatti tabled two concepts in the late '90s, but for now, let's focus on the concept car that debuted at the 1998 Paris Auto Show: the Bugatti EB 118. This two-door hatchback coupe was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro, famed automotive designer and founder of the hallowed design studio Italdesign. Giugiaro designed some of the world's most visually striking cars, like the Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta SWB Speciale Bertone, Lotus Espirit, DMC DeLorean, and more. In fact, the 250 GT Berlinetta SWB made it onto our list of the ten best-looking cars of all time.
Although not resembling any of the models available at the time, like the EB 110, which was the world's first modern hypercar, or the Bugatti Veyron that would debut a few years later, the EB 118's left-field styling was the result of its design being inspired by the 1931 Bugatti Type 50 and the Bugatti 57SC Atlantic. The inspiration from the 57SC Atlantic was more palpable and pronounced, given that its flanks were punctuated by grilles behind the front wheels and a faint longitudinal rib running down the middle of the car over the roof that served as a nod to the classic Bugatti model.
While its styling was enough to warrant a quick double take, what was hidden beneath its long hood was undoubtedly the defining feature of the Bugatti EB 118. That characterizing element was Volkswagen's naturally aspirated 6.25-liter W18 engine, which produced 555 hp and 479 lb-ft, enough to make it one of the most powerful coupes of the '90s. Well, that's if it ever made it to production.
This was the first passenger car to employ the colossal eighteen-cylinder engine, and it's different from Bugatti's modern W16 engine in that it comprises three banks of six inline cylinders, and not the staggered two-bank arrangement that the VW Group's other W-designated engines use by dint of being related to the VW VR engine family. The hulking power unit was proposed to be paired with a five-speed automatic transmission, and its 555 hp was directed to all four corners of the 4,800-pound coupe through a permanent four-wheel-drive system inherited from the Lamborghini Diablo VT. It was an impressive machine that would be sent back to the operating table.
The Bugatti EB 218
1999 Bugatti EB 218 Black Front Angled View
Only a year after the EB 118's debut, Bugatti introduced another concept: a sedan powered by the same W18 engine. The Bugatti EB 218 was an evolution and re-imagining of the EB 112 introduced in 1993. Let's talk about the Bugatti EB 112, because it plays an important role in the EB 218's story. This concept was unveiled at the 1993 Geneva Motor Show. A 6.0-liter V12 engine was its source of forward momentum paired to a six-speed manual. It was a ludicrous concept of which only a handful of examples would be conceived and three sold off after Bugatti went bankrupt in 1995, despite Roman Artioli's best efforts to save Bugatti. Three unfinished examples of the Bugatti EB 112 would be sold to Gildo Pallance Pastor, who would have those examples finished by the Monaco Racing Team in 1998, each featuring bespoke styling enhancements and aero features.
A few years after the EB 112's debut and subsequent demise, Bugatti would offer an evolution of the early-'90's concept, with a model featuring a larger engine and body. Again, just like the EB 118 and the EB 112, Giorgetto Giugiaro had a hand in designing this Bugatti concept car, which retained many of the features present in the concept that debuted a year before. Underneath another long hood was the same W18 engine that reportedly produced the exact same power output as the Bugatti EB 118, and all of its power was still fed to all four wheels using the Diablo VT's four-wheel-drive system.
The EB 218 was significantly longer than the EB 112 it superseded. From curvaceous tip to sloping tail, it measured 212 inches, and it sat on a 118-inch wheelbase. The length difference between the EB 218 and its predecessor is 12.4 inches. However, the EB 218 was also differentiated from the 1993 concept through a redesigned hood, bumpers, and headlights. Another distinguishing aspect of the EB 218 was its roofline, which was more akin to a hatchback saloon than a conventional saloon. The advanced oily bits were juxtaposed with a well-appointed interior that had some similarities to contemporary Bentley cabins, featuring wood veneers, plush leather seats, and lots of Alcantara.
So, What Happened To Bugatti's W18-Powered Coupe And Sedan?
1998 Bugatti EB 118 Concept Black Front Angled View
Nothing. As we can see from the lack of a production series sedan and coupe powered by an eighteen-cylinder engine in Bugatti's 2000s catalog, the concepts proposed in the late '90s never went into production. Why? That's unclear. It's likely that despite concepts unveiled at various automotive shows, Bugatti might never have been ready to produce either concept, meaning they were mere design exercises. A more likely explanation is the cost and complexity of actually bringing a three-bank W18 to life, and the technical difficulties in routing an exhaust manifold through one of the engine's Vs, as would have been required. Hot-V engines were not even a thing back then, and it presented engineering challenges to execute.
This fate has befallen many concept cars, like the Audi R8 concept, which was powered by a twin-turbocharged diesel V12 engine, and died in infancy before it could become a reality, because the cost of the re-engineering that would have been required to fit the long V12 in the R8's engine bay could not be justified by the expected sales volumes. Basing the eventual Veyron's engine on the existing and more compact modular VR engine family meant that it could share a practical two-bank layout with other W engines, such as the W8 in the Passat and the long-running W12 used in a multitude of cars, saving costs and making the cars economically viable. But the EB 118 and 218 will remain to serve as reminders of what could have been.
Source: Bugatti Built A Bonkers Sedan In the Late 1990s
