Bugatti’s Forgotten Sedan Resurfaces With A Supercharged W16 Engine

The Autostadt museum next to Volkswagen’s factory in Wolfsburg is the gift that keeps on giving. With so many wild experiments secretly developed during the Ferdinand Piëch era, this VW Group–owned destination is well worth a visit. We recently talked about a Lamborghini Diablo SV with a W16, but there’s another one-off powered by the illustrious sixteen-cylinder engine: the Bugatti Galibier.

Originally revealed in 2009, the concept was built on a Bentley Arnage chassis but featured an entirely different body, interior, and, of course, engine. While the donor car relied on V8s from BMW and Rolls-Royce, the unique Bentley-based Bugatti doubled the number of cylinders. Unlike the Veyron and its quad-turbo setup, it used a twin-supercharged layout and could also run on ethanol.

Oh, and the engine was mounted up front, hiding beneath a gorgeous split-opening hood. The 8.0-liter monster produced around 1,000 horsepower, with Bugatti opting for supercharging to improve low-end torque better suited to a grand tourer. It’s unclear how much the car weighed, but given its size and the sheer amount of luxury onboard, the Galibier must’ve been heavier than the Veyron. For reference, the original 16.4 model from 2005 tipped the scales at 4,162 pounds (1,888 kilograms).

Although 17 years have passed since the Galibier debuted, it remains a sight to behold. The one-of-a-kind Bugatti was technically a liftback rather than a sedan, thanks to its more practical tailgate. Coincidentally, the five-door Porsche Panamera arrived the same year, but this concept took luxury and power to an entirely different level.

Attached below is a new walkaround video from YouTuber Horsepower Hunters, offering a rare look at the Galibier’s interior. Everything is draped in the finest leather VW Group could offer at the time, complemented by a sea of polished wood. While the Veyron kept screens to a minimum to maintain a timeless cabin, Bugatti went in a different direction here. Not only did it feature a large digital instrument cluster, but it also had a touchscreen mounted low on the center console.

In the back, the video shot at the Autostadt reveals that another screen would rise and rotate toward the rear occupants at the press of a button. The Galibier was conceived strictly as a four-seater, with two individual rear seats separated by a leather-wrapped armrest and a center console that bisected the entire cabin. But the pièce de résistance wasn’t the wood or the leather. Instead, it was a feature hiding in plain sight: a $100,000 watch that emerged from the dashboard and could be removed and worn on the wrist.

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Source: Autostadt GmbH

So what happened to the Galibier? When Bugatti unveiled it in 2009, the company said the concept was designed to gauge interest in a potential production version. However, the opulent fastback never made it to market because Bugatti felt it would’ve confused customers. The thinking was that the brand was defined by its all-conquering Veyron, so it chose to follow up with the Chiron rather than pursue a luxury-oriented model.

Motor1’s Take: The Galibier may seem like a missed opportunity, but it’s worth remembering that Bugatti needed a whole decade to sell all 450 Veyrons. A sedan or liftback would likely have been an even tougher sell had it entered production in the mid-2010s. That’s not to say it wouldn’t have been spectacular, but the company probably made the right call.

While we missed out on a sedan with eight exhaust tips, Bugatti’s new Tourbillon offers that dramatic setup as an option for one-percenters. The V16-powered hypercar is sold out until 2029, so that peace of mind could convince higher-ups to green-light a second model. Given the brand’s heritage, a sedan would make the most sense, so the spirit of the Galibier may yet return as a sumptuous vehicle for the ultra-rich.