Every Bugatti is as unique as its owner. But for some customers, the design they choose for their car is not final – tastes can change or new ideas can provide a spark of creativity at any time. Regardless of whether a customer has owned the car for a day or a decade, there is always the opportunity to give it a completely new personality. And that’s how it was with this latest order from Sur Mesure.
The story begins with two Bugatti enthusiasts, a married couple who owned several hyper sports cars from Molsheim, but never a brand new one. Together they decided to celebrate their great passion for Bugatti by each purchasing the ultimate Grand Tourisme: the Chiron Super Sport. The husband’s car was delivered first, and having already enjoyed his Chiron Super Sport on US roads, he watched closely as his wife’s Chiron Super Sport came to life with the help of the bespoke Bugatti Sur Mesure team.
Working with Jascha Straub, Sur Mesure’s chief designer at the Bugatti house in Molsheim, their bold vision was to reinvent a design that first inspired them when it was unveiled 12 years ago: the timeless Veyron L’Or Blanc . She fell in love with a combination of bright red Rosso Efesto and bright orange Arancia Mira and created her very own hand-painted masterpiece in a style that became known as “Vagues de Lumière” because of the way it mimics light reflections. This pattern, like the L’Or Blanc, has inspired the creativity of the Bugatti owners, each of them applying their own unique touch and reinterpreting the design in a subtle, personal way.
The complicated process of creating this extraordinary paint job takes weeks and begins with creating 2D shapes that represent the lines that will flow across the car. These must be applied to the 3D surfaces of the car with millimeter precision and secured with adhesive tape. Each millimeter of the marked lines is then carefully hand-painted layer by layer with the contrasting color – in this case orange. If the line does not quite match the designer’s intent, correction tape is applied over the original line until the shape is absolutely perfect. This process is repeated until every single line has the right flow and character. The paint is then secured with several layers of clear varnish. The resulting paintwork, combining a deep, glossy red with a bright orange, appears to glow vibrantly with energy and perfectly reflects the name the customer chose for this car: “L’aura” (“The Aura” in English). ).
Jascha Straub, explained: “The ‘Vagues de Lumière’ effect is not new for Bugatti, but every customer has their own wishes and ideas about how they want it to look, and every car requires a different pattern. A Chiron Pur Sport, for example, will have different reflexes than a Chiron Super Sport, so we work from the ground up every time to ensure absolute perfection. The true beauty of these cars also lies in their individuality – each painter has a different style, so each car is completely unique. I recently saw this car for the first time in the bright California sunshine and people couldn’t believe how incredible it looked. What we have created together is an inspiring sculpture.”
So inspiring that it gave rise to another Sur Mesure project. As her husband watched the design of his wife’s car evolve, he discovered “Coup de Foudre” (a fitting double meaning of “lightning” and “love at first sight” in English). He decided to have his own car modified to match theirs – an exciting new project for the Bugatti customer service team.
Bugatti customers now expect the extraordinary at every step of their journey with the brand; From customization to delivery to service, customer service reflects the same focus and attention to detail that goes into the design of every Bugatti.
The customer service team in Molsheim, which has decades of experience servicing and repairing vehicles, also allows customers to further personalize or even refurbish their cars with a wider range of customization options and features. The interior will be designed in all-new colors and materials, new accessories will be added, and the exterior body will feature updated finishes and colors. Traditionally, this process is offered for Bugatti models like the Veyron or older Chiron models, but the service also extends to almost new cars like this one.
And with that, the Chiron Super Sport was shipped from the customer’s home in Tennessee to the customer service workshop at the Bugatti home in Molsheim, where a painstaking, seven-month transformation began to adapt it to the customer’s new desired design.
For the customer service team, transforming this brand-new car into a visible carbon fiber finish with a subtle 10% black tint, wrapped in light-sculpted lines of French Racing Blue, took months of preparation alone. The carbon fiber hood, roof, engine cover and rear wing had to be replaced and the originally required blue lines had to be completely removed from the body. A new Sky View roof was also specified, which meant the entire original roof panel had to be removed from the monocoque structure. All of this could only be done after removing every single part of the interior to ensure that it remains completely free of the fine dust created during the process. The end result should not just feel fresh, but like a brand new car with the same attention to detail and quality standards that apply to every car that leaves Molsheim.
The panels had to be aligned to the car with millimeter precision to ensure that the visible fibers of the carbon material were perfectly distributed across the entire body. Attaching the new roof was a crucial step – the Bugatti customer service team had to maintain the exact tolerances required and allow the structural adhesive to fully cure.
Once the bodywork was perfectly prepared, it was time to begin applying the stripes, applying unique 2D shapes for the French Racing Blue contrasting color. These cutouts are so intricate that at this stage, one person has worked exclusively on this project for four weeks, adjusting the selected pattern to fit this car perfectly. The blue paint was then hand applied in many layers to create these flowing lines and create the illusion of bright reflections over the black body. Although inspired by his wife’s car, no two cars will be exactly the same, as each is subtly influenced by the personality and artistic flair of the designer who created the lines and the craftsman who brought them to life , penetrated. The paint is then applied to the entire car with precision and attention to detail, so that the lines extend like waves of light reflections across the perfectly formed Bugatti.
In keeping with his wife’s car, the name “Coup de Foudre” – which refers to the blue lines painted on black carbon that look like lightning bolts in the night sky – is hand-painted under the rear wing, on the door sills and on the sides of the center console . Bespoke door panels with a unique design inspired by “Vagues de Lumiere” were also made and assembled by hand. As a final touch, the wheels were repainted from the original black finish to a hand-painted Duotone design with French Racing Blue.
Frederic Stocks, head of the aftersales workshop, said: “Never before have we been asked to completely change the character of a car so early in a customer’s ownership. This is one of the most technically demanding projects we have ever undertaken, but the experience and knowledge of the Bugatti Aftersales team is second to none. From customization to delivery and beyond, customer service ensures that every step of the Bugatti customer journey is as unique and unrivaled as our cars.”
The resulting bespoke Chiron Super Sport is a triumph of passion and creativity, combining the customer’s personal vision with the creativity of the Bugatti team.
Hendrik Malinowski, Managing Director of Bugatti Automobiles, said: “There is no other car manufacturer like Bugatti. Each customer’s journey is a unique testament to the unparalleled level of personalization that only Bugatti can offer. Each Bugatti expert has a different approach and the resulting cars are completely unique, reflecting not only each craftsman’s individual artistic style, but also the customer’s vision. For these two customers, the difference in their travels was clear. But both demonstrate the savoir-faire that runs through our brand, appropriately inspired by one of our most innovative and beautiful creations: the timeless Veyron L’Or Blanc.”
