The Bugatti Mistral, a stunning roadster powered by a quad-turbocharged W-16 engine, reached an extraordinary top speed of 454 km/h, surpassing the 2016 record set by the Hennessey Venom GT Spyder at 427.4 km/h.
The speed run took place at the Automotive Testing facility in Papenburg, Germany, with Bugatti’s test driver Andy Wallace at the helm. Entering the straightaway at 200 km/h from the banking, Wallace pushed the Mistral to its limit, achieving a remarkable speed on the 4.0-kilometer track. While longer stretches like the Ehra-Lessien test track could have provided even more room to push the Mistral further, the Papenburg facility proved sufficient for this historic feat.
The Mistral, named after the powerful wind of southern France, is an engineering masterpiece. It shares its DNA with the Chiron Super Sport 300+, the first road-legal car to break the 482 km/h barrier in 2019. Powered by a quad-turbocharged 8.0-litre W-16 engine, the Mistral produces a staggering 1,578hp—100 more than the standard Chiron—and delivers power to all four wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.
