When it comes to the safety of consumers, no recall is too big or too small. Even still, it’s hard to wrap your head around issuing one for a single vehicle.
But that’s what luxury automaker Bugatti is doing. The company recently recalled one single 2023 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport because it was fitted with the wrong wheels. Specifically, the vehicle was given a set of Leichtbaurad BBS rims, and the company said the Chiron Super Sport is not validated for those particular wheels.
Bugatti said the mistake occurred because, at the time of the final individualization configuration step prior to production, there was no restriction placed in the IT system to invalidate use of those rims.
The automaker warned the wheel mixup could result in loss of downforce and a potentially negative influence on driving behavior and a loss of control. But it said that would only happen in Top Speed Mode, which requires the driver to insert an additional key prior to starting the vehicle, allowing the car to reach up to around 260 miles per hour. And that honestly doesn’t sound very safe even with the correct wheels.
However, Bugatti said the vehicle is still safe to operate in all other driving modes.
If recalling just one car seems bizarre, it is worth noting that the Chiron Super Sport has extremely limited production numbers and costs around $4 million. So, it’s reasonable to expect a fully functioning supercar at that price.
Bugatti said the affected customer will be contacted and offered a free replacement set of rims, brand new tires, valves and sensors.
As Jalopnik points out, this isn’t the first time Bugatti has recalled just one car. Last year, the automaker issued a recall for another Chiron for a loose screw.