Lego Built A Life-Size Bugatti Chiron That You Can Actually Drive

Bereft of the millions it takes to acquire a new Bugatti Chiron, a Lego version could be as close as most of us get. And though you could build one just about any size you want, we pretty much take it for granted that it’ll be smaller than the real thing, and won’t actually drive.

Those assumptions don’t apply here, though. The Alsatian automaker and the Danish toy company teamed up to build this full-size, fully drivable Chiron replica out of Lego Technic pieces – over a million of them, in fact.

It even packs 2,304 little motors from the Lego Power Function series and 4,032 Technic gear wheels to make it actually drive – albeit not quite as fast as the real thing. With 5.3 horsepower (4 kW) and 68 lb-ft (92 Nm) of torque, the 1.5-metric-ton replica is said to top out at little over 12 mph (20 km/h).

The project took over 13,000 man-hours to develop and build. In other words, if one person had undertaken the project, it’d have taken nearly a year and a half to complete – without stopping to eat, sleep, or so much as take a break.

All told, 339 different types of Lego pieces were used, completing not only the outer shape and the frame, but the rear wing, head- and tail-lights, and full interior – including seats, speedometer, and removable steering wheel. (Well, we suppose all of it would technically be “removable”).

Bugatti even tested the finished product at Ehra Lessien with former Le Mans winner Andy Wallace behind the wheel. It’s the same VW Group proving ground where the “real” Chiron set the 0-400-0 km/h (248 mph) record last year, and where Wallace drove the McLaren F1 to 390 km/h (242 mph) two decades ago.

“Driving the LEGO Chiron was a great experience, which I thoroughly enjoyed,” said Wallace. “All those years ago I could never have imagined that one day I would actually drive a LEGO car!”

“This life-size model is a first of its kind in so many ways and with it, we wanted to push the boundaries of our own imagination,” added Lego VP Lena Dixen. “Our Technic designers and the engineers from the Kladno factory in the Czech Republic, the place which also builds the impressive models for LEGO Stores and LEGOLAND parks, have done an amazing job both at recreating the Chiron’s iconic shapes and making it possible to drive this model. It’s a fascinating example of the LEGO Technic building system in action and its potential for creative reinvention.”