Bugatti’s $18.7 million, one-of-a-kind supercar, La Voiture Noire, is set to make its public debut in the U.S. after being sold to an anonymous male buyer.
The supercar will appear on Sunday at the Concours D’Elegance in Monterey, California, an ultra-exclusive car show on the 18th fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Links, tickets for which start at $450.
La Voiture Noire, which translates to ‘The Black Car’, previously debuted in Europe at the Geneva International Motor Show in March. Rumors have swirled about the car’s mysterious buyer, after it was sold to an unidentified Bugatti aficionado based off only a sketch.
Soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was forced to deny that he was the buyer, after a Spanish outlet reported that he had purchased the hypercar.
‘The story isn’t true. He has not bought it,’ Ronaldo’s spokesman told TMZ in May.
Other names that have been floated as possible buyers for the car include boxer Floyd Mayweather, who owns a massive fleet of luxury vehicles, including several Bugattis. Keen observers note, however, that Mayweather has never been shy about flaunting his wealth, and speculate that he would be unlikely to keep the purchase a secret.
There have also been reports that the supercar is actually headed to Ferdinand Piech, the former chairman of the Volkswagen Group, which owns Bugatti. Bugatti said that the company approached a single buyer with concept sketches of the vehicle, and the customer agreed to buy it on the spot.
Video: Bugatti unveil the world’s most expensive new car, La Voiture Noire
‘As soon as a customer makes a public claim, then we can refer to that, but other than that we will honor a customer’s anonymity and he will decide whether or not he wants to remain anonymous,’ Bugatti spokesman Tim Bravo told CNBC. The only clue the carmaker offered is that the buyer is married, noting that his wife suggested the car’s six tailpipes.
The buyer will have complete freedom to customize the car’s interior, said Bravo. The car appeared in Geneva with blacked-out windows to conceal the interior, which is not yet complete. The French luxury company built only one of the prototype supercar, which is a tribute to the 110th anniversary of the founding of the company.
The La Voiture Noire is a modern interpretation of the mythical and legendary Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, four of which were built between 1936 and 1938. Three of the coveted classic cars are accounted for while the fourth one, which was lost in World War II, would be valued at well over $100 million if found today.
The La Voiture Noire is a veritable rocketship, powered by an 8.0-liter turbocharged W16 engine that can reach 260mph. However, the car is not yet complete, and isn’t expected to be street-ready until 2021 at the earliest.
Although the car is thought to be the most expensive new car ever sold, there will likely be even more expensive classic cars at Pebble Beach on Sunday. A 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO was sold at last year’s Pebble Beach car week for a record $48.4 million.
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