Concept Car: Remembering the Bugatti EB118

By Tim Wu - February 26, 2014

A little historical gem for everyone today. As we know, Bugatti has done more than enough to make themselves a household name in the last nine years. Since the relaunch of the French-native, German operated Bugatti automotive brand they’ve certainly become quite the ubiquitous nameplate, standing at the crest as the oligarchs of opulence; royalty of world records and synonymous with sentiments of impossible to obtain high status.

But as fancy as Bugatti may be, they too are a just human. And like all humans, they too can exhibit moments of weakness, falter from uncertainty, and show sporadic behavior. That’s the best way to describe the story of Bugatti’s little engine that could, the W18.

Actually, it wasn’t little at all. It was an 18 piston behemoth comprised of three six cylinder engine banks frankensteined together. The beautifully polished, quirky engine by VDub only made 555 horsepower and 479 lb-ft in the EB118 concept; a paltry showing when compared to its eventual production successful sibling. The Veyron made an astronomical 1,000hp with only a W16 engine.

The EB118 was an ungainly vehicle. The proportions felt a little strange, kind of like an odd mutt offspring of the Veyron, a Porsche Panamera, and VW Beetle. Today, this post is showcasing the gorgeously polished engine, sitting on its pedestal, to be tucked away in the annals of history (and the archives of Motive Mag’s now defunct site) as Bugatti’s interesting pet project that never really took flight.