Bugatti to Recall 77 Hypercars Due to Reported Electronic Failures

Chiron, Chiron Sport and Divo owners, take note.

Bugatti employs a team of experts to build each one of its multimillion-dollar hypercars over a period of months, but even they are fallible. 

Robb Report picked up a statement from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announcing two separate recalls of the Chiron, Chiron Sport, and Divo models. 

The most expansive recall affects 73 examples across all three models manufactured between 2017 and 2020. According to the NHTSA, the electronic stability control system fails to default to its fully functional setting after an ignition cycle if the Handling Mode is selected. This increases risk of accident and violates a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard requirement for ESC systems. That issue should be easily rectified with a software reprogram at no cost to the owner. 

The second recall is more serious but only applies to a combined total of four 2020 model-year Divos and Chirons. Their left driveshaft can break, which could lead to parts dislodging onto the road. Bugatti will replace the faulty part tasked with transmitting 1,180 pound-feet of torque from the 8.0-liter W16 free of charge. 

News of the recall began making the rounds on the same day that Bugatti unveiled new imagery of the Bolide. The track-only hypercar was created in an effort maximize performance by running an absurdly high 1,825 horsepower tune of Bugatti’s stalwart 16-cylinder in an ultra-light vehicle, achieving a  .67 hp-per-pound power-to-weight ratio. 

Though a physical prototype hasn’t been created, Bugatti says that the Bolide hit over 310 mph and achieved Formula 1-level performance in simulations. 

“In our history that dates more than 110-years, there has never been a comparable model based on such a minimalist concept conceived solely around the engine,” said Bugatti President Stephan Winkelmann. “Driving the Bolide is like riding on a cannonball.”

We’ll require a test drive to confirm.