The Château de Chantilly has never lacked for scenery, but this year Bugatti brought along something capable of competing with the architecture.
At Chantilly Arts & Elegance 2026, Bugatti delivered the Brouillard—the first creation from its new Programme Solitaire—to its owner in a private ceremony beneath the château’s grand Dôme. The one-off coachbuilt Bugatti then emerged into considerably less private surroundings, joining more than 700 collector cars gathered for one of France’s great celebrations of machinery, craftsmanship and the pleasantly civilized business of admiring automobiles.
Brouillard represents Bugatti’s return to the old coachbuilding idea: start with formidable engineering, then shape a singular automobile around the tastes and imagination of one customer. Programme Solitaire takes that tradition into the modern Bugatti era, where exclusivity apparently has several additional levels above “rare.”
The weekend offered plenty of supporting cast. Bugatti assembled a remarkable collection of modern machinery, including special Veyrons and W16 Mistrals, while three Veyrons and the Chiron Profilée took to the roads around Chantilly. Prewar cars supplied the historical perspective, with Types 13, 35, 37, 39, 40 and 51 reminding everyone that Bugatti was building fast, beautiful and slightly improbable automobiles long before anyone coined the word “hypercar.”
On Sunday, Brouillard entered the Concours d’Élégance Concept Class and led the Bugatti Parade alongside cars spanning the marque’s history. A 1925 Type 35 won the Bugatti race-car class, proving once again that nearly a century has done little to diminish the visual authority of Ettore Bugatti’s most famous racer.
Brouillard had a good afternoon as well, taking Best of Show for Concept Cars, Restomods & One-Offs before its owner drove it around Le Nôtre’s Water Mirrors.
Above contents © 2026 Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. reviewed and edited by Rex McAfee , @rexmcafee 🏁
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