Why are Supercars so Expensive?

The reason why supercars cost so much money is because they are "super cars", it's in the name people. What else were you expecting? Lol, just felt like catching a little cruise. Please read the rest of the blog post.

2019 Bugatti Chiron

Let us take a close look at the price list of some supercars;

1. Bugatti Chiron Super Sport starts at $3.8 million dollars. 

2. Rimac Nevera cost upwards of $2 million dollars.

3. McLaren Speedtail cost about $2.25 million dollars.

4. Koenigsegg Jesko is priced at $3.4 million dollars.

From the list of supercars above, there is an obvious similarity. It does not take much to notice they all have outrageously high price tags. Most would argue that they are over priced but let us take a look at why they are so pricey. I personally love the Bugatti Chiron, so it would serve as the basis of our discussion.

1. Payment for years of development and mental work

It would come as a shock when you realize some of the modern supercars or sometimes just a part of these cars have been in the production process for years. For example, the W16 engine that powers the Bugatti Chiron today began as a drawing on an envelope in 1997. The engine underwent its first test in 2001, reaching the required 1,001 PS (987 horsepower / 736 kilowatt) output but this engine did not arrive until 2005, giving Bugatti engineers four years to hone the engine’s smoothness and reliability.

Bugatti's W16 Engine

The W16 engine was a success in the Veyron and Bugatti kept improving on it. Just thinking about all the work put into the engine, not to talk of the gear box, chassis, brakes and other components that make up the car. Let's just say this alone is worth 500k dollars.

2. The amount of time and sheer effort put into production of these cars

I know we have all heard the joke that a hundred Toyota's are produced in the same time one supercar is produced. Well, it is no joke and that joke is actually underestimated. Let's do the math;

* Toyota roughly creates 23,814 brand new cars each day around the world.

* On the other hand, one Chiron takes about six months to produce from start to finish.

*There are about 180 days in 6 months, which means one Bugatti Chiron is made in the same time 4 million Toyota's are produced. Outrageous isn't it?

Bugatti Chiron in Production

Now, one would ask why it takes six months to build a Chiron? Well, Bugatti says no robots are used to make the Chiron and this is true. A team of 20 people assemble the 1,800 parts that make up the Chiron. This is not just exclusive to the Chiron as most high end luxury and supercars are hand built by professionals. For example, it takes two people six days to build the W16 engine, which has 3,712 individual parts. So what they lack in quantity, they make up for in quality and this makes the bill run up.

3. Rare and expensive materials used in production of these cars

Interior of a Bugatti Chiron

At first glance into this interior, it reminds me a JAY-Z lyric, "Photoshoot fresh, looking like wealth". No cap, this interior looks like Arabian wealth, this is as premium as leather than be. According to Bugatti’s Director of Interior Design, Etienne Salomé, the configuration of a Bugatti hyper sports car is like going to a tailor. Each car is an individual piece of work, each tailored individually. Inside each car, exist top-notch picks of materials like leather, carbon, platinum, or solid aluminum. Minus all the grammar, these supercars are made with expensive and sometimes rare materials that are brought together by highly skilled professionals. For this reason alone, you realize why these cars are damn expensive.

4. Exclusivity: In other words, these cars are meant for the masses

The Bugatti Chiron is not as exclusive as other supercars due to it's high demand but even at that, only 500 units are being produced. Let us take a look at other supercars from our list;

* Only 30 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ models will be produced.
* Only 106 McLaren Speedtails will be produced.
* Production of the Koenigsegg Jesko will be limited to 125 units.
* Rimac Nevera production has been limited to 150 vehicles.

"Supercar no be for Civil Servant" - Ebunmide (2023)

Alright, lets do another math. There are approximately 7.8 billion people in the world and about 47 million millionaires of the entire population. This means that for each super car, there are 400 millionaires willing to spend good money. In simple terms, Supercar no be for Civil Servant.

There are people with ego (money) willing to buy outrageously priced cars, so these car manufacturers can slap any price tag on a car knowing the rich would literally fight themselves to get their hands on one or two.

There are way more reasons why supercars cost an arm and a leg, but I will limit this episode to these four. I really enjoyed researching and writing on this particular episode, so if you want more in depth episodes like this, please comment with a YEA! 

Thank you for reading and always remember to Turbo that engine.