27 year-old Nils Sajonz is head of special projects at Bugatti design and one of the key people that developed the 1825bhp 8.0-litre W16 ‘designer bullet’ that is the Bolide (literally translating to “racing car” in French). The technical demonstrator in these pictures has already been sold to a Bugatti customer for an undisclosed sum, but expect this one-of-one to have cost circa £10m, if the Divo, limited to 40 units cost £4.5m each, the ten Centodieci models £7m a pop and the one-off La Voiture Noire £9m-plus.YesAuto had an exclusive chat with the young man behind the Bolide, to discuss his design philosophy and also his inspirations, from motorsport and aviation to art…
Is the Bolide just an extensive re-jig of an existing vehicle?
No, it has a totally new monocoque and subframe. We made everything new. And you can really drive it. For us it was a ‘what if?’ project, freeing the drivetrain from road regulations, to see what is achievable in terms of power-to-weight ratio [the Bolide boasts 1825bhp, a 1240kg dry weight and can go from 0-62mph in 2.17 seconds].
Racing car aficionados may appreciate the Bolide but how would you argue its relevance to the wider world?
Bugatti is very special and our company is always looking to make the fastest cars and use the latest technology to push boundaries. It’s not only a design study but a study into new technologies, like titanium 3D printing for wishbones, chassis and exhaust parts. It creates a step forward.
Bugattis don’t come around often and you’ve been at the brand since 2015. What else have you been doing for the last five years?
I’ve been working on our limited edition projects, making them feasible for the road – including the Divo, La Voiture Noire and the Centodieci.
Do you ever drive the cars you design, or is that above your pay grade?
I’m still not allowed to drive them unfortunately, but as a passenger it is already quite exciting. Test-driving is limited to test drivers, existing and potential customers and the media.
What are your inspirations from car and non-car design?
Aviation and racing both have a nice mix between the latest technologies and ‘form follows function’ – things are there for a reason. There’s a company in the US building Virgin Galactic’s spaceships called Scaled Composites. The White Knight One which carried the rocket is one of the coolest planes. In terms of art I really like Claude Monet and Amedeo Modigliani, the fantastic way they express themselves. Bugattis don’t have a typical ten-year car life, so to work on something that is long-living creates a responsibility. You find the same in paintings, which can live for 100s of years. In racing I really like the F1 cars from the 2008 and 2017 seasons, which were so aerodynamically guided and with very visible ideas. And I’m also inspired by the Bugatti Type 57 Atlantic because it’s the perfect combination of pure elegance while still the fastest car of its time. That’s the link to today’s Bugattis, like the Chiron, probably the fastest cars on earth, but still with an elegant approach.
Keyword: Exclusive: Bugatti Bolide’s designer secrets revealed