Bugatti was founded by Ettore Bugatti in 1909 in Molsheim, Alsace. From the outset the marque blended engineering art with artisanal precision, and after its revival under Volkswagen it became a byword for the modern hypercar built in numbered series.
The breakthrough was the Veyron 16.4, unveiled in 2005 as the first production car to exceed 1,000 horsepower and 400 km/h. At its core sat a quad-turbocharged W16 displacing 8.0 litres. Across a decade of production, ending in 2015, exactly 450 cars were built in coupe and Grand Sport roadster forms.
Its successor, the Chiron, was shown at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show. It retained the W16 8.0 layout but lifted output to 1,500 hp and 1,600 Nm of torque. Production was capped at 500 units, and variants such as the Super Sport and Pur Sport split that allocation into even smaller series. Chiron production ended in 2024, closing the chapter on the sixteen-cylinder engine.
Bugatti's rarity comes down to the numbers. Combined Veyron and Chiron output is fewer than a thousand cars worldwide, much of it locked into private collections. Each example is configured individually, so two identical cars effectively do not exist.
The Chiron's successor is the Tourbillon, announced for 2026 with a new 8.3-litre V16 paired to a hybrid system for a combined 1,800 hp. The planned run is just 250 cars, keeping the marque at the very pinnacle of scarcity.
For an importer, Bugatti is an occasional proposition. Cars of this class change hands rarely, and when they pass through Japanese auction channels they demand individual verification of history, specification and documentation. Karasaki treats such requests as bespoke sourcing rather than a standing catalogue listing.