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When Volkswagen Group pushed for an electric successor to the Bugatti Chiron, Mate Rimac said no. Instead of dropping a battery pack into a rebadged Nevera, Rimac chose to build something entirely different: a bespoke hybrid hypercar with a naturally aspirated V16 at its core. His call, made as he took control of Bugatti with Porsche in 2021, has since proven right — all 250 units of the resulting Tourbillon are already spoken for.
Rimac’s decision ran counter to the VW Group’s post-Dieselgate electrification push. The German giant had every reason to want an EV flagship from the French brand. Rimac Automobili had already demonstrated the potential of electric performance with the Nevera, a 1,914-horsepower machine that reset expectations for acceleration and handling. Putting the Bugatti badge on that platform would have been cheap, fast, and technically low-risk. But Rimac saw a different market reality.
“On paper, it could be Bugatti, right? Plus, it would be a lot easier than doing a completely new car with a new combustion engine,” Rimac told Automotive News Europe. “However, that is what I ended up doing with the Tourbillon because based on the feedback from the market on the Nevera I realized the market was going in a different direction.”
The Nevera’s sales numbers backed him up. Late last month, Rimac revealed on Instagram that only 71 examples of the electric hypercar had been sold, against a planned run of 150. The car was a technical tour de force, but wealthy buyers did not line up for a pure EV in the way many had expected. That early signal shaped the Tourbillon’s identity: a plug-in hybrid combining three electric motors with a Cosworth-built 8.3-liter V16 that revs to 9,500 rpm.
For Bugatti’s clientele, Rimac reasoned, drag-strip numbers are not enough. Exclusivity, emotion, and ritual matter as much as acceleration. An EV can deliver instant torque and brutal pace, but it cannot recreate the theater of a naturally aspirated sixteen-cylinder engine winding out. The Tourbillon keeps electrification as a complement rather than the headline act. That approach gave Bugatti a clear point of difference from Rimac Automobili, whose own flagship remains strictly electric.
Rimac’s independence from VW has grown since that decision. Porsche, which helped engineer the 2021 deal that gave Rimac operational control of Bugatti, sold its stakes in both Bugatti Rimac and Rimac Group in early September. That exit marks the end of an era that began under Ferdinand Piëch, when VW acquired Bugatti and turned it into a showcase for extreme engineering. Now the French brand is back on its own, with Rimac holding the reins.
The break is not total — VW Group still sells its own performance cars, including the upcoming Audi Nuvolari and the Porsche Mission S concept, a model slated to sit above the 911. But Bugatti will no longer be part of that portfolio’s hierarchy. Rimac sees the separation as an opportunity, not a loss.
“There are so many cool Bugattis we have planned in the product portfolio. We know what we want to bring to the market for the next 10 years. I’m so excited. I can’t wait to show this to the world because what we are doing is incredible. It’s fine art on four wheels. With the independence that we have now and the freedom I have to run the company, I think it will be so enriching to the auto industry and enthusiasts of the world to see these cars,” he said.
The obvious question is what those future models will actually be. Rimac has promised a decade’s worth of new cars, but not every Bugatti can be a multi-million-dollar hypercar with a limited run. A more practical grand tourer would open up volume without cheapening the brand. The most commonly cited candidate is a spiritual successor to the Galibier, the five-door liftback concept that was shown in 2009 but never reached production. A modern take, built on the Tourbillon’s hybrid platform, would give Bugatti a second line without sacrificing its exclusivity.
Whether Rimac chooses that route or something more radical, his decision to reject VW’s EV plan is already vindicated. The Tourbillon’s sell-out status shows that the ultra-wealthy are still drawn to combustion engines when they are done right. That does not mean they are anti-electric — the Tourbillon itself has a substantial electric range — but it does suggest that hybrid powertrains offer a better balance for this segment: zero-emission city driving plus the emotional appeal of a sixteen-cylinder engine on the open road.
Rimac’s approach also clarifies how a small, independent manufacturer can compete with corporate giants. He did not chase a technology trend for its own sake. He listened to his actual customers, acknowledged the Nevera’s lukewarm sales, and built a car that does what Bugatti buyers expect: combine art, engineering, and performance in a way that feels unmistakably unique.
For the broader auto industry, the Tourbillon is a counterpoint to the industry-wide EV pivot. It shows that even in the most restrictive regulatory era, there is still space for a low-volume combustion-engined icon. The car has not yet reached customers, but the production allocation is gone, which suggests demand remains robust.
Rimac’s challenge now is to keep that momentum without depending on VW or Porsche. He has full control over product planning, pricing, and brand strategy. That freedom comes with risk — Bugatti no longer has a giant corporation to absorb development costs or supply-chain shocks. But it also means decisions can be made faster and without committee compromise.
The next decade will reveal whether Rimac can stretch Bugatti beyond the hypercar niche. If he succeeds, the story of the Tourbillon will be remembered as the moment an independent boutique automaker stood up to a corporate directive and won — not by fighting electrification, but by putting the right kind of electrification in the right kind of car.
As of today, October 2, 2025, no official details have been leaked about the next Bugatti models beyond the Tourbillon’s ongoing deliveries. Industry watchers expect a reveal within the next 12 to 18 months, likely timed to a major European auto show. Until then, the V16 hybrid Tourbillon stands as the clearest statement of where Rimac wants to take the brand. It is a car that would not exist if he had followed the plan handed to him by VW. And that, in itself, is the story.
