Only 1 Brand Makes the 2 Least Efficient Two-Seaters, With a Combined MPG in the Single Digits
Gas prices influence consumer car buying. When gas prices are low, people buy larger vehicles, most notably trucks and SUVs. However, when gas prices go up suddenly, hybrids and small cars are in higher demand.
This behavior stays true regardless of a person’s income level unless that person is a billionaire with lots of disposable currency. Perhaps that’s why many of the least fuel-efficient cars on the EPA website are expensive vehicles like the Mercedes-AMG GT or Bentley Continental GT. In fact, the one brand that makes the two least fuel-efficient two-seaters also makes the most expensive cars.
If you guessed the answer is Bugatti, you are correct. Coming in with a base price in excess of $3,500,000, both the Chiron Pur Sport and Chiron Super Sport get combined mpg ratings in the single digits.
The Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport is an extreme performance version of the regular Chiron
Lighter and faster than the regular Bugatti Chiron, the Pur Sport version tips the scales at 4,450 pounds. While not exactly a bantam-weight supercar, its heft is offset by the 8.0-liter W16 engine that produces 1,479 horsepower. All that power will slingshot you from 0 to 60 mph in 2.4 seconds and through the quarter mile in 9.4 seconds. The top speed is only 217 mph, which is down from the standard Chiron’s top speed of 261 mph. However, unless you have your own private runway, you’ll unlikely miss the extra speed.
This is the sport version of the Bugatti Chiron lineup. As such, it has thinner padded seats with carbon fiber shells. There is less sound insulation, and the mechanically actuated rear wing is replaced by something that would look at home on a Boeing 737.
The whole car features a “less is more theme.” Less weight, more performance. Fewer comfort features, more price.
The estimated fuel economy for the Chiron Pur Sport is a dismal 8 mpg in the city and 11 mpg on the highway for a combined 9 mpg, according to the EPA. The meager 11.1-gallon gas tank gives it a range of 100 miles. As for the annual estimated fuel cost, if you have to ask, you can’t afford it. However, if you must know, it’s $26,750, which is only less than the cost of a private jet.
The Bugatti Chiron Super Sport is even more extreme than the Pur Sport
What did Bugatti do to top the Pur Sport? They made the Chiron Super Sport. If the Pur Sport is extreme dialed up to 10, the Super Sport is dialed up to 11. Weighing about the same, the 8.0-liter W16 engine is tweaked to produce 1,578 horsepower. That drops the 0 to 60 mph time from 2.4 to 2.2 seconds with a quarter mile time of 9.1 seconds at a speed of 161 mph. Perhaps Bugatti felt bad about the Pur Sports’ lowly 217 mph top speed because the Super Sport will reach 273 mph, given enough room.
Like the Pur Sport, the Super Sport weighs less than the standard Chiron and uses the same tricks, including lighter seats, thinner padding and insulation, and fewer features. Also, like the Pur Sport, it gets the same mpg ratings of 8 mpg in the city and 11 mpg on the highway, or a combined estimate of 9 mpg.
Both the Chiron Pur Sport and Super Sport are like land jets
If you think of either the Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport or Super Sport as transportation, you’ve missed the point. There’s no practical reason these cars exist. Their cost approaches private jet money; in a way, they are like private jets built to travel on land.
The justification for the Chiron’s existence can be summed up in one word: appreciation. It’s a car meant to be appreciated for its very existence. A car that a very lucky few get to drive, and those that do will understand its mind-altering performance. However, it’s also a car meant to appreciate in value. The $3 to $4 million price tag makes it like a piece of art to hold on to while it increases in value. When measured against its appreciation, the 9 mpg gas mileage estimate is inconsequential.
