Take a listen to the Bugatti Tourbillon's V16

16 cylinder Bugattis are not a new thing - but a V16 is. Hear it in action here

By Matt Bird / Thursday, 3 September 2026 / Loading comments

Sound is one of the most important factors when it comes to any performance car - but especially a hypercar. Look at how the multi-million dollar EVs are faltered, while those combustion-powered exotics seemingly can’t be made fast enough. What the driver hears and feels from pistons, valves and cams doing extraordinary things is a huge part of the appeal of something V10 or V12-engined. Or V16, for that matter…

With so much focus of late on the W16-engined Bugattis of the past, development of the new Tourbillon has taken something of a back seat. At least from a publicity perspective, that is - obviously plenty has been going on behind the scenes as the final bits of bringing a 1,800hp car to reality are completed. One of those is noise testing for homologation; while it looks like something from another planet, the Tourbillon is officially a road car like any other on the public highway. So it must meet the same requirements when it comes to sound, emissions and so on.

Not the easiest task for a V16-engined rocketship, even if hearts aren’t likely to bleed for the plight of Bugatti. Huge tyres throw up plenty of noise, as can active aero components. Without even considering a 9,000rpm, naturally aspirated 8.0-litre engine that customers will want to hear at every opportunity. The target figure is 72 decibels - or rather that’s the maximum permitted - which is tested across constant speed and acceleration runs to pass the homologation test.

Hence Bugatti working through thousands of different intake and exhaust configurations, ‘to find the right balance between performance, refinement and the distinctive rawness that is synonymous with a Bugatti engine’. Don’t forget there’s an electric element to the Tourbillon’s powertrain as well, where peace and quiet will be the aim. Absolutely nothing about the sound is said to have been augmented.

Interestingly, the engines of the recent past have also played a part in the Tourbillon soundscape. A surprise given it was the sheer performance, rather than any great musical quality, that left the strongest impression of the quad-turbo W16. But that’s a USP, says Head of NVH and Acoustics Romain Volatier: “Bugatti, from a sound perspective, has never had a very clean-sounding engine. It has always been a little bit dirty and raw, so we decided to keep that as one of the key points of the sound.”

Certainly what you hear in the video isn’t really like anything else. There’s a bit of flat-plane crank V8 to the new engine, as well as some more conventional eight-cylinder sonics, with the occasional bit of electric whirr also. Even brief exposure would suggest the Tourbillon is a more emotive-sounding hypercar than anything with a W16. If maybe still not, for now, shrieking like a V12. But it is legal and therefore almost ready for sale. “We’re still working on small refinement and little details,” said test driver Paolo Magrone. “The big chunk of the project is done and we are here just to close this chapter. It’s been a successful and positive testing activity.” They’ll be back soon enough to homologate the Grand Sport, no doubt…