(CNN Business)Bugatti and the London-based Little Car Company have teamed up to make 500 miniature electric Bugattis for kids — and now a few of them have just become available to buy.
Originally, all 500 of the mini electric cars that the companies planned to make were sold after the car was unveiled at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, however, some customers changed their minds, making a few available for new customers, Bugatti announced Friday.This new all-electric miniature car is called the Bugatti Baby II and starts at about $35,000. It’s a modern interpretation of the original Bugatti Baby from nearly a century ago.
In 1926, Ettore Bugatti wanted to make a car for his youngest son so he helped create a drivable half-sized replica of the famous Bugatti Type 35 racing car. Originally, there was only supposed to be one, but Bugatti’s customers were so delighted by the little car that the company made about 500 more.
The Bugatti Baby II is an electric replica of the classic Bugatti Type 35.The new Bugatti Baby II is somewhat larger. It’s 75% of the size of a real Bugatti Type 35. While the original Bugatti Baby was meant for an eight-year-old to drive, the new car is intended for young teenagers.Read MoreAnd this time it’s electric. The Bugatti Baby II comes in three versions. The base model has two driving modes. In Novice mode the car can go up to 12 miles an hour. In Expert it can go up to 30 miles an hour.The Vitesse and Pur Sang versions can go even faster. These upgraded versions cost $50,000 and $68,000, respectively, and they come with a Speed Key. As with the the Bugatti Chiron supercar, the Speed Key unlocks the small cars’ full performance potential. With it, they can go up to 42 miles an hour and, depending on the weight of the driver, can go from zero to 60 miles an hour in as little as six seconds. These more powerful versions, with their larger battery packs, can drive up 31 miles on a charge.
Le Mans winning racer and Bugatti test driver Andy Wallace helped develop the suspension for the Bugatti Baby II.Bugatti test driver Andy Wallace, the same man who drove a Bugatti Chiron over 300 miles an hour on a test track, helped develop the suspension settings for the Bugatti Baby II.
“In its most powerful mode, when you have the ‘Speed Key’ inserted, the Baby II is a very fast car. It’s quite impressive and brilliantly fun,” Wallace said in a statement.Buyers of the two more premium versions can choose whatever paint colors they like, including all the colors available on the Chiron. An online configurator is available at bugattibaby.com.
Source: edition.cnn.com