Bugatti built exactly 99 Mistrals, and every single one found a home before the car was even shown to the world in August 2022. So when this particular Bugatti Mistral, chassis VF9SM3V3XSM795096, rolls across the block at RM Sotheby’s Monterey sale carrying a $7.5 million to $9.5 million estimate, what’s really being sold is a shortcut to ownership, and apparently a rather profitable one for the seller.
Bugatti opened order books for the Mistral at around $5.5 million. Production has since wrapped up entirely, having officially closed with the last Mistral to leave the factory, which means buying used is the only option if you want one. This particular owner took delivery, drove it a grand total of 321 miles, and is now putting it up for sale for as much as $4 million above what they paid. Not a bad flip, for less time on the road than a single road trip for most people.
If you really think about it, that may not be the whole point though. This is the last roadgoing Bugatti built around the 8.0-liter, quad-turbocharged W16, the engine that started with the Veyron back in 2005 and ends its production run here. In this state of tune it makes 1,578 horsepower and 1,180 lb-ft of torque, and in November 2024 a Mistral World Record Car hit 282 mph, making it the fastest open-top production car ever built.
This particular Mistral is specced to impress. It features Italian Red paint over Nocturne outside, with Italian Red and Beluga Black leather interiors, adding up to roughly $325,000 spent on options alone. The gear selector is machined from a solid aluminum block and houses a tiny amber-encased Dancing Elephant, a nod to Rembrandt Bugatti’s sculpture from the Type 41 Royale days.
RM Sotheby’s own listing calls this car a blank canvas for its next custodian, which is a polite way of saying the first owner barely left a mark. Whoever buys this Mistral isn’t just inheriting one of the last W16 Bugattis ever built, they’re effectively getting a brand new one, with a price tag attached to the convenience of skipping the line. Most Bugattis lie somewhere between craftsmanship and speculation, and the Mistral proves that perfectly.
