Bugatti shocked the world last March when they pulled the covers off what would become the most expensive new car of all time. The Bugatti La Voiture Noire is a one-off model built exclusively for one of Bugatti’s top customers, rumoured at one point to be footballer Cristiano Ronaldo. “The true form of luxury is individuality,” said Stephan Winkelmann, Bugatti boss. “With La Voiture Noire, we are paying homage to our heritage and bringing speed, technology, luxury and aesthetics forward to a new era.”
The car is powered by a 1103kW 8.0-litre 16-cylinder engine, most likely based on the engine located at the heart of the Bugatti Chiron, and costs a colossal $18.8-million, which works out to around R263-million. We did some research and quick maths* to compile a list of 15 car that you could buy for the same price as the Bugatti La Voiture Noire. The list includes hypercars, SUV’s, supercars, GT’s, luxury sedans and daily drivers. Here they are:
3 Hypercars - First up on the hypercar list is the Lamborghini Veneno Roadster, which by itself is one of the most expensive cars in the world, priced at around R62.8-million. If you’re feeling bad that you didn’t buy the La Voiture Noire, you could feel better by buying a Bugatti Chiron Sport for R45.5-million. What a bargain! The final hypercar that made it onto the list is the all-electric 1408kW Rimac C_Two that will do 0-100km/h in just 1.85-seconds for R29.3-million.
3 SUV’s - It’s difficult to pick between the comfort of the Rolls Royce Cullinan and the performance of the Bentley Bentayga Speed, which is currently the fastest SUV in the world. Thankfully our budget allows us to buy both! The R3.7-million Bentayga and R8.5-million Cullinan is joined by the Lamborghini Urus, since it’s a great all-rounder and will accumulate an impressive amount of clout at R3.5-million.
3 Supercars - What’s a supercar collection without a Lamborghini? The new Aventador SVJ costs R11-million and will get you an unlimited amount of V12 thrills. But if you happen to only enjoy your V12’s in a red Ferrari then you’ll be happy to know that you can also afford a R9-million Ferrari 812 Superfast! We have room for one more hardcore supercar, so let’s add a R4.5-million Porsche 911 GT2 RS to the fleet.
3 Luxury Cars - No matter how many supercars we buy, there will still be days where we need space for luggage or room for more than two passengers. When an SUV just won’t do, we need luxury sedans and wagons to do the trick. Nothing screams “I’m a baller” louder than a R10-million Rolls-Royce Phantom, which finds its way into our mega fleet. For a bit of droptop long distance cruising, the R5.4-million Mercedes-Maybach S650 Cabriolet makes its way onto the list. Perhaps you always find yourself in a situation where you need to drop the kids off at school in a hurry, which is where the R2.9-million Porsche Panamera Turbo S E Hybrid will come in handy.
3 Daily Drivers - You could have the fastest, fanciest cars in the world, but everyone needs a proper daily car that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg to run and can still put a smile on your face. A BMW M2 would have been enough, but we have a few hundred million to spend so let’s upgrade it to a R1.8-million BMW M3 CS. We’ve still got room for two more daily’s, which is where the R1.6-million Mercedes-AMG C63 Coupe and R1.2-million Audi RS4 Avant come in. A sedan, a coupe and an Avant. There’s a car for any situation.
How much are we left with? - After buying 15 insane cars with our R263-million budget, there should be a few hundred thousand Rands leftover to throw some aftermarket parts on our M3 for the drags, right? Well, that’s correct. In fact, we managed to save just over R35-million. That’s more than enough to add an extra McLaren Senna to the collection if we wanted to and puts the magnitude of the Bugatti La Voiture Noire’s price tag into perspective.
*Prices may be slightly inaccurate due to currency conversion
FAQ
Q: How much does the Bugatti La Voiture Noire cost in South Africa?
The Bugatti La Voiture Noire costs approximately R263 million in South Africa, making it the most expensive new car ever sold.
Q: What cars could I buy instead of the Bugatti La Voiture Noire for the same money?
For R263 million, you could buy 15 incredible cars including a Lamborghini Veneno Roadster (R62.8 million), Bugatti Chiron Sport (R45.5 million), Rolls Royce Cullinan (R8.5 million), and 12 other supercars, hypercars and luxury vehicles.
Q: Is the Bugatti La Voiture Noire worth buying at R263 million?
Unless you're a billionaire collector who values absolute exclusivity above all else, the La Voiture Noire's R263 million price tag is impossible to justify when you could own an entire fleet of world-class supercars for the same money.
Q: What engine does the Bugatti La Voiture Noire have?
The La Voiture Noire is powered by a massive 1103kW 8.0-litre 16-cylinder engine, most likely based on the powerplant from the Bugatti Chiron.
Should You Buy It?
The Bugatti La Voiture Noire at R263 million is absolutely not worth buying for 99.99% of people on the planet. While it's undeniably a stunning piece of automotive art with incredible performance from its 1103kW engine, the price is so astronomically high that you'd be mad not to consider the alternatives. For the same R263 million, you could own a Lamborghini Veneno Roadster, Bugatti Chiron Sport, Rimac C_Two, Rolls Royce Cullinan, Bentley Bentayga Speed, Lamborghini Urus, and nine other world-class machines. Unless you're sitting on billions and want the ultimate bragging rights of owning the world's most expensive car, skip the La Voiture Noire and build yourself the most epic garage collection South Africa has ever seen instead.
