The process began in October 2023 in Molsheim. A discerning Bugatti collector met with Jascha Straub, the Manager of Sur Mesure and Individualization, to discuss a W16 Mistral. They explored concepts and color samples, but the client was drawn to a single idea: the poetic beauty of the moon.
This was not just an aesthetic preference. The collector is the author of ‘Le Retour du Jeune Prince’, his own literary work conceived as a continuation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s cherished novel. In his story, the young prince returns to Earth from the moon. This narrative would shape every surface of his car.
A constellation of silver stars is worked into the paintwork through an intricate process of layering and refinement. It required immense time and dedication from Bugatti’s specialists. As a further nod to Saint-Exupéry’s original story, a hidden composition is revealed only when the air brake deploys: a reinterpretation of the famous scene with the prince and the fox.
The story continues inside the cabin. The interior is finished in two leather tones: a light, luminous Terre d’Or and a darker, grounding Driftwood. The Terre d’Or door panels feature inlays of embroidered leather showcasing the moon, surrounded by star motifs stitched with precision.
This celestial language appears again on the hand-stitched headrests and within the brown-carbon weave of the center console. The most direct link to the literary universe is encased in the gear shifter. An intricate silver rose, 3D-scanned from a real flower and then sculpted into a miniature form, sits encased like an item of high jewelry. It is a direct nod to the original tale, symbolizing tenderness and remembrance.
As Jascha Straub noted, “The W16 Mistral ‘Le Retour du Jeune Prince’ is a beautiful example of what Sur Mesure can achieve when a customer’s personal story is placed at the heart of the creative process. It has been an honor to bring this vision to life in a way that respects both Bugatti’s heritage and the customer’s individual story.”
