Bugatti is up to something.

Something, I hope, to do with what could have been if VW hadn’t had to pay a squillion dollars in Dieselgate fines.

Pictured here is the Atlantic, a homage to the 1936 Type 57 Atlantic that’s somehow brutal and elegant at the same time. Look at those doors! That rear clam shell! Front engine/rwd looks good on you, Mr Bugatti.

Speaking of engines, the Atlantic was supposed to get a V8 and some electric motors. What it totally should have been given is the Chiron’s W16 along with viewing cutouts in its expansive bonnet.

That’s the Rembrandt, named for Ettore Bugatti’s sculptor brother. It’s another victim of the Dieselgate pinch, with more aggressive Divo-style headlights and angrier styling all round. Still looks the business though, dunnit?

If anything, I’d say that a big, imposing ultra-GT car fits with Bugatti’s image better than a mid-engined hypercar ever could. Disagree? Don’t worry, there’s one of those in the mix too.

The Veyron Barchetta was to come with the Grand Sport Vitesse quad-turbo W16 and much less windscreen. Maybe pulling up at the Casino Monte-Carlo wearing a crash helmet isn’t ideal, but the car on which the Barchetta’s based would do 233 mph and a sparrow to the teeth at that speed would be fatal. 

So yes, sad that the bedroom walls of the world were never adorned with posters of these cars. Maybe all’s not lost though. The pictures were released by Bugatti themselves, so maybe they’re up to something…

I’ll keep you posted!