L’Ébé Bugatti, Ettore Bugatti’s daughter and eldest child, was very close to him, like a soul mate. Bugatti is now honouring L’Ébé with a very special small series of three cars. For the final delivery of the Chiron and Chiron Sport in Europe, Bugatti’s designers developed a Chiron and two Chiron Sport with the name L’Ébé. All three hand-crafted hyper sports cars are bearing unique details in the Art Deco style.
As the eldest child of Ettore and Barbara Bugatti, L’Ébé, born in 1903, had more insight into the extraordinary rise of Bugatti than anyone else. Ettore even chose to hide his own initials “EB” in her first name, so L’Ébé would not have to forgo the Bugatti surname even after marriage. In her later book “The Story of Bugatti”, a biography of Ettore, she gave invaluable details into the history of the brand and her father himself.
Now, L’Ébé herself also becomes an important part of Bugatti history. The Chiron and Chiron Sport L’Ébé draw inspiration from her love of Art Deco style. Chiron’s character lines are mostly echoed in the famous Bugatti Type 57 G Tank that won Le Mans in 1937 – here on the L’Ébé those lines are accented in gold, shimmering against the exposed blue-tinted carbon body. Gold highlights also adorn the “EB” badging, the famous horseshoe grille and parts of the 8.0-liter W16 engine cover. Even the wheels come with an understated gold tint.
L’Ébé’s signature logo hides subtly on the underside of the retractable rear spoiler, as well as on the treadplates and hand-stitched into the headrests of the seats. The cabin subtly mirrors the exterior, with exposed blue-tinted carbon visible throughout and a light versus dark theme, hinting at L’Ébé’s dark blue body and gold highlights. The door panel on the driver’s side is finished predominantly in “Silk” leather with “Lake Blue” highlights. The passenger’s, meanwhile, reverses the colour scheme. Each door panel features a motif of the visual evolution of Bugatti’s most iconic cars, from early Grand Prix racers through to EB110, Veyron and Chiron. L’Ébé’s numerous bespoke touches perfectly showcase Bugatti’s limitless creativity and craftsmanship when it comes to exclusive tailor-made projects.
Bugatti and the Bavarian minting and embossing company Poellath GmbH & Co. KG together spent five years developing the new gold Macaron that now adorns the grille of the Chiron L’Ébé. Only with extensive research and laboratory testing, numerous experiments, and passionate attention to detail did the two teams succeed in achieving the perfect result in this incomparable handcraftsmanship.
It is based on the solid 970 sterling silver Macaron that is usually found on Chiron models, and which is nickel-plated during a lengthy process. The material nickel serves as the foundation and corrosion protection for the gold finish which is subsequently applied. The experts apply a thin layer of gold measuring between three and four micrometers to the Macaron and then polish the part to give it a mirror finish. The process, which is performed predominantly manually, takes over ten hours.
Christophe Piochon, President of Bugatti Automobiles, said: “L’Ébé Bugatti’s biography of her father consists of numerous diary entries by Ettore himself, letters from his early employees, customers, business partners and her own experiences. It helps a lot to understand Ettore’s personality, his goals and the appreciation everyone had for him and his products. With this knowledge we could transmit the Bugatti DNA into the present time maintaining the essence, grade of perfection and quality standards up to this very day. Through this unique configuration and use of her name for the final Chiron and Chiron Sport, we wanted to honor her with the status she deserves in our brand’s history.”
The Bugatti Chiron, introduced to the world in 2016, was the first production car to deliver 1,500 PS of power, creating an entirely new sector of hyper sports car performance. Its 8.0-liter W16 quad-turbocharged engine, advanced four-wheel-drive system and lightweight chassis set new standards not just for acceleration, top speed and handling but also for comfort, usability and reliability.
It has since become the template for a number of different evolutions of the Bugatti hyper sports car, including Chiron Sport, Chiron Pur Sport and Chiron Super Sport. The three exclusive Bugatti Chiron L’Ébé mark the end of Chiron and Chiron Sport in Europe. The Chiron L’Ébé and a Chiron L’Ébé Sport have already been delivered and the third model will be delivered by the end of the month.
Photographs by Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S