Northampton-based
Cosworth, a global leader in automotive powertrain technologies, is celebrating the launch of its most powerful hypercar engine to date following the grand unveiling of the
Bugatti Tourbillon on 20 June. The Bugatti’s new generation hyper sports car joins an incredibly exclusive set of Cosworth-powered high-performance cars, which includes the Aston Martin Valkyrie, the Gordon Murray Automotive T.50 and the Bizzarrini Giotto.
Experts in clean-sheet design, Cosworth was approached in 2021 by Bugatti to design and manufacture a new engine for its newest hyper sports car, the Chiron successor. However, the engineers were not expecting to be tasked with such a mammoth request — a high capacity, high-revving V16 capable of producing 1000hp. It is an engine configuration that hasn’t been mass produced in the automotive industry since the 1930s, with only a handful created as prototypes for niche vehicles in recent years.
Bugatti Tourbillon’s naturally-aspirated V16 was first teased in February, however details of its engine were kept carefully under wraps. Cosworth can now reveal more technical insight into the hypercar’s hybrid engine. It took the company 13 months to transform its first detailed designs into the first V16 engine running on a dyno at Cosworth’s Northampton headquarters – a particularly impressive turnround given the scale of the ambition in the project.
The resulting product of this ambitious project is a 8.35-litre engine that can reach 9000rev/min. Cosworth elected for a cross-plane crank design with 90deg bank angles and dry sump. Weighing just 252kg in total – lighter than the naturally-aspirated Aston Martin 6.0-litre V12 – steps were made to optimise weight throughout the engine, including titanium connecting rods and a carbon fibre inlet plenum. The overall length of the crankshaft is 900mm, made from a single billet, with a total engine length just shy of 1m — demonstrating the scale required to power this incredible car.
GoosebumpsCosworth’s Bruce Wood, managing director of Powertrain, said: “I think we all got goosebumps the first time we heard the roar of the Bugatti’s incredible V16 engine; it is a truly unique piece of machinery. Producing a V16, especially one as large as this 8.35 litre, is no easy feat. With the crank and camshafts measuring almost 1m long, we had to employ innovative design technology to overcome the torsional loads.
“The first thing that hits you when you see it is the sheer size of the engine – there is no escaping it. Yet we were able to use our experience to develop high tolerances within the design, thus reducing the mass and weight of the final product. When we heard it fire up on the dyno and reach maximum revs, we were astounded at the sound. The performance figures speak for themselves, and coupled with the hybrid powertrain, the experience of the Bugatti Tourbillon will be truly one of a kind.”
Cosworth's CEO Dr Florian Kamelger said: “Cosworth has emerged as the undisputed leader in hypercar engine design. We use 66 years of heritage and experience to develop powertrains that push the boundaries of performance, while also adhering to ever-stricter global emissions regulations. This latest partnership with Bugatti, one of the most revered names in automotive performance, is a reflection of the world-class talent we have within Cosworth. Together, we have delivered something totally unique, within a tight timeframe, that will form part of one of the greatest hypercar powertrains ever created.”