We knew that Luka Doncic has a special taste in cars. In his garage are real rarities like the Apocalypse Hellfire 6×6, a pickup truck modified by Soflo Jeeps with three axles and six wheels. There are also classic gems like a ’68 Chevy Camaro … Last year, the brand painted his clothes to coincide with the premiere of its new model of sneakers. We’ve also seen him drive a Porsche Panamera, a Porsche 911 Turbo S or a Lamborghini Urus tuned by Mansory since he got his license when he was still playing for Real Madrid. But the Los Angeles Lakers’ luxury car collection has taken a qualitative leap with its latest acquisition: One of 99 units of the Bugatti W16 Mistral, the fastest convertible in the world.
Rapper Snoop Dogg, a loyal fan of the Los Angeles Lakers, stopped by one of the California team’s training sessions, a visit he used to also wander the outdoor parking lot of the place where he saw LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Austin Reeves and company. Cameras captured the moment when the musician discovered the “Batmobile”: an impressive black convertible with orange details.
As you approach the car, it becomes clear that it is a W16 Mistral. The last Bugatti produced was a quad-turbo W16 engine with 1,600 hpIt was first used in the Chiron Super Sport 300+. It is the fastest convertible on the planet, as recorded last year in an official test in which the Mistral W16 reached 453.91 km/h on the ATP Automotive Testing Papenburg track in Germany.
It is worth noting that the maximum speed record for a production car was until last September held by a model from Molsheim: the Chiron Super Sport, which in 2019 achieved a speed of up to 490 km/h. It was overtaken by the Yangwang U9 Xtreme, the latest version of the 100% electric supercar developed by BYD, which reached a speed of 496.22 km/h.
Bugatti W16 Mistral, the day it became the fastest convertible in the world
Returning to the video starring Snoop Dogg, once the Bugatti model the rapper poses with was discovered, all that remained was to find out which Lakers player this amazing model belonged to, The “Batmobile” is authentic due to its black design with the classic Alsatian brand center stripe in orange. And this player is none other than Luka Doncic, who appears in the video of the car musician among the jokes.
The Slovenian is therefore one of the 99 owners in the world of the Bugatti W16 Mistral, with up to units of this car presented by the French manufacturer at the Monterrey show in 2022. The first models, assembled by hand, left the Molsheim factory in February of this year, almost three after their presentation.
We know this because Bugatti itself announced it, and showed what these two first versions look like, one in white and the other in matte black, similar to the one Luka Doncic has, but with blue details instead of orange. The two left for the United States, the home of the buyers, as would later happen with the global NBA star unit.
The first two Bugatti Mistral W16s leave the Molsheim factory
A work of mechanical engineering art
The history of the W16 Mistral, a convertible with a price tag of up to 5 million euros, is inspired by Bugatti’s most famous roadsters. especially, The Alsace signature refers to the 1934 Type 57 Roadster Grand Raid Usine and the Type 57S Roadsterbuilt by Corsica, two cars that define the essence of the W16 Mistral.
We previously talked about its mechanical performance, as its power reaches 1,600 horsepower from a quad-turbocharged W16 engine, which made the car reach speeds exceeding 450 km/h. It is a work of mechanical engineering by Bugatti, whose designers became obsessed with aerodynamic perfection, which is evident in the front of this car, which bears the name of a Mediterranean wind and is a jewel of design.
Another copy of the W16 Mistral
The W16 Mistral grille is designed using Innovative horseshoe shape, expanded and equipped with 3D printed mesh Aligned so that the air is directed towards the supercar’s central radiator. In this way, Bugatti engineers take advantage of the engine’s power to provide cooling for the car. The air intake system integrated into the car’s carbon fiber body is completely innovative, according to the company.
It’s just one of the many details of the Mistral that explain the level of demand Bugatti placed on itself in developing the convertible, which It took three years to deliver it to buyers Because Bugatti subjected it to a comprehensive testing process. In fact, the prototype covered more than 32,000 kilometers in different terrains: from high mountains to heavy traffic conditions, to which another 5,000 kilometers were added on the track.
Nearly 40,000 kilometers, a number that most Bugatti cars around the world do not reach, push the performance of a unique car to the limit, a convertible worth 5 million euros that is owned by only 99 people in the world. We’ve now learned that one of them is NBA star Luka Doncic.