Bugatti is a fairly senior hypercar manufacturer with dozens of impressive units. Even in the era of CEO Stephan Winkelmann’s leadership – the era before Rimac’s acquisition – Bugatti’s focus was centered on SUVs as future models to face electrification.
In an interview with the media, Achim Anscheidt as Bugatti’s head of design said that he was worried that changes in design and identity could weaken Bugatti’s exclusivity.
“We always have an idea of what can be a model in the future. But then we also thought at one point, is this design change capable of starting to sell?” Anscheidt said.
Anscheidt did not completely rule out the idea. He said if Bugatti was too excited about launching higher volume models (SUV or Crossover), then the hypercar line had to be made more exclusive in order to strike a balance.
Winkelmann’s predecessor, Wolfgang Dürheimer also briefly revealed in 2016 that there were four options for Bugatti’s second model line: a sedan, an SUV, an EV, and a more affordable supercar.
Given that the SUV trend has skyrocketed in various countries, it actually makes sense that Bugatti would also want to launch this model. Moreover, Ferrari and Lamborghini have started to feel comfortable releasing products in this segment.
Bugatti has plenty of time to decide the direction of the company. However, they must first talk to Rimac as their parent company. Mate Rimac as CEO said in an interview that there will be no Bugatti SUV or EV in the next 10 years.
Rimac has also previously said that Bugatti will only focus on hybrid powertrains for the next chapter, and has no intention of becoming an EV let alone an SUV.
Bugatti’s first electric vehicle has 0,94 HP, Top Speed 18.5 MPH, and range 22 miles
