It was years ago now – more than 10- when I first saw what was to become this Bugatti Galibier 16C Concept car. It was the Bugatti EB 218, a concept that shared the same fastback shape and uber luxury stance as this close to production Bugatti Galibier 16C automotive. Perhaps the EB 218 was a bit more attractive, but certainly not as advanced. Car lovers have known for a while now that Bugatti was to follow up its money losing 16/4 Veyron over a million dollar car, with other vehicles. Little is known about the details of this Bugatti Galibier but it will not be the significantly lower priced sports car we are looking forward to. It is an all new sedan, also with a 16 cylinder 8 liter engine and a two-stage supercharger. What is interesting about the engine is that it is made to be a Flex Fuel motor. Meaning it can accept standard gasoline as well as ethanol. No, it is not being marketed by GM. The car also features a substantial amount of carbon fiber as well as the large polished aluminum sides. Yes, that is right, the car features aluminum siding.
Not that any of this wasn’t enough to go out and plan how a series of murders will somehow land you the car, but Bugatti threw something inside for the watch lovers. I know the car isn’t “beautiful” by Ferrari standards, but it still satisfies every cargasm and luxogasm need any of us may ever have.
Instead of a standard dashboard clock, the Bugatti Galibier will feature a removable Parmigiani tourbillon clock/watch. I actually had to rewrite part of this article before posting it as I just learned more about the watch Parmigiani released a bit more details about. Previously I thought that the tourbillon watch would be some type of modified Parmigiani Type 370. Bugatti wasn’t being clear as to what Parmigiani watch it will be, but it turned out not to be the Parmigiani Bugatti Type 370 Centenaire watch. This timepiece has been around for a while (since 2004) and has always been connected with Bugatti. Seen here is the newest version that comes in gold or platinum and has an engraving pattern all over the same meant to look like the famous tightly woven metal of the Bugatti ‘gravestone’ looking grill.
So the included watch will be this shown new Parmigiani Bugatti Tourbillon. A watch that has four purposes. First it will fit into at least two spots on the car (center of the dashboard, as well as near the instrument panel cluster), fit into a wrist watch strap module, fit into a pocket watch module, and bit into a desk clock module. I am not sure whether the watch will be wound somehow while being docked into the car. This should be the case though right?
Really there isn’t much else known about the watch. I will leave it up to Parmigiani to let us know about the materials, size, movement, etc… later on. It is clear that the watch will have the time, exposed tourbillon, as well as a prominent power reserve indicator. The watch is purposefully made to be easy to read from a distance.
Frankly I am glad that the watch in the car is not the Parmigiani Type 370, as wouldn’t even wear the thing as I find them pretty ugly and impractical, but I like concept nonetheless. Placing one in a car dashboard would look awkward, and would also make it really hard to tell the time as the face is relatively small. So I like the Tourbillon watch enough, and am excited to learn more about it, such as will you be able to get the watch alone? Or just with the car? Coming just with the Bugatti 16C car will make the Parmigiani Bugatti Tourbillon watch quite the collector’s item years from now. Overall I think the timepiece is sufficiently impressive to accompany the uber luxury land yacht yet, but it doesn’t get me as excited as the car – which is part of the point of a car clock anyway.
I will leave it to the more dedicated car writers to fill you in on the all the goodies about the Bugatti Galibier 16C car as it slowly moves from concept to reality (which I am pretty sure of), instead you can relish in all the cool watch lover bones that Bugatti and Parmigiani threw out to us. Ordinarily I would chat for a bit about why a car would even have a removable tourbillon watch, and how that would all work… though here I do not. We are talking about Bugatti here, the Disneyland thinkers of the car word. It does not need to make sense. It just needs to tickle us in places we didn’t know could be tickled. I think it has like eight chrome exhaust pipes. Super cool! Then again, from the side the 16C looks a bit like a Porsche Panamera that just engulfed John DeLorean’s chrome dream, like a tricky suitcase of cocaine planted by the FBI did to his future.
See Parmigiani watches on eBay here.
[phpbay]parmigiani, num, “14324”, “”[/phpbay]