There is a long, highly lucrative tradition in the cycling industry of sticking a luxury automotive badge onto a carbon fiber bicycle, jacking the price up by 400 percent, and selling it to middle-aged dentists who want to feel like they own a hypercar. We’ve seen it with Ferrari and Colnago. We’ve seen it with McLaren and Specialized.
Now, Factor Bikes has decided it’s their turn to cash in.
Today, the British manufacturer announced the “Bugatti Factor ONE,” a strictly limited-edition collaboration that promises a “radical fusion of hypercar engineering and elite cycling performance.” Let’s translate that from PR-speak: they painted a bike French Racing Blue, slapped a massive Bugatti logo on the down tube, and slapped a mind-bending $23,599 (€25,799) price tag on it.
Tearing Up the Rulebook (Because Nobody is Actually Racing This)
The major marketing hook for the Bugatti Factor ONE is that it is strictly “UCI-illegal.”
According to Factor, the collaboration allowed them to “eschew the rulebook” to find the fastest possible aerodynamic configuration without having to adhere to the rigid geometry regulations of professional racing. The most obvious result of this rebellion is the front fork, which boasts a massive 147mm stance, blowing right past the UCI’s 115mm limit.
Factor claims this radical front end, combined with the bike’s integrated aerodynamics, delivers measurable drag reduction and improved high-speed stability. But let’s be entirely honest with ourselves: absolutely zero of the 250 people buying this bicycle are going to push it to its aerodynamic limits. You don’t buy a $23,000 Bugatti-branded bicycle to absolutely bury yourself in a crosswind on a Tuesday night group ride; you buy it to hang it on the wall of your climate-controlled garage next to your actual Porsche.
The $9,400 Paint Job
If you strip away the automotive branding, the base Factor ONE is already an incredibly fast, ultra-premium aero bike that retails for roughly $14,000 fully specced. So, what exactly are you getting for the nearly $10,000 Bugatti premium?
Well, you get bespoke Black Inc “Hyper 62” carbon wheels that weigh a claimed 1,298 grams. You get a custom Selle Italia saddle wrapped in the same Alcantara material used in hypercar interiors. You get Carbon-Ti chainrings, CeramicSpeed bearings absolutely everywhere, and an exposed 3K twill carbon weave finish that matches Bugatti’s cars. Oh, and the head tube features a tiny replica of Rembrandt Bugatti’s historical “Dancing Elephant” sculpture.
“The Bugatti Factor ONE is not simply a bicycle. It is a statement,” Factor founder Rob Gitelis noted in the press release.
He’s completely right. It is a massive, $23,599 statement that you have far more money than physiological talent. If you want to drop the equivalent of a perfectly good hatchback on an aero bike that you aren’t legally allowed to pin a number to, the Bugatti Factor ONE will be officially unveiled in Shanghai tomorrow. The rest of us will just stick to our UCI-legal bikes and try to get our FTPs up.
Tech Specs
| Frame | TeXtreme®, Toray®, Nippon Graphite® Pitch-Based Fiber, 3K Finish |
| Fork | Bugatti Wide Front End 147 mm width (vs 115 mm UCI limit) |
| Seatpost | 0 and 30mm setback available |
| Barstem | Factor Integrated Barstem Reach 80mm, drop 120mm. 380 barwidth, 5 reach options. |
| Headset | 1-1/8″ upper and lower bearings |
| Bottom Bracket | CeramicSpeed T47 ALPHA |
| Cable Routing | Internal |
| Brake | Disc Brake 160mm front & rear |
| Groupset | SRAM RED AXS w/ Power Meter Chainring: Bugatti-Branded Carbon-TI, X-CARBORING 48/35 Crank: THM carbon crank arm Powermeter: SRM ORIGIN PM9 Cassette: 10-33T Rotors: Bugatti-Branded Carbon-TI X-FIX ROAD BLACK BUGATTI OSPW: CeramicSpeed OSPW |
| Wheelset | Black Inc Hyper 62 co-moulded hub flanges + bonded spokes, hidden nipples, ultra-low system weight |
| Tyres | Bugatti-Branded Continental TT tyres |
| Saddle | Bugatti-Branded Selle Italia SLR Carbon |
| Bartape | Custom Bugatti Bartape |
| Batch | Bugatti Engraving: Numbered Plate 1 of 250 |
| INCLUDED ACCESSORIES | Bike Bag: Factor / Post Carryco. Loomer Travel Bag Black Inc Aero Integrated Bottle Cages 3D Custom Computer Mount |
| Manufacturer Warranty | Limited Lifetime Warranty |
Buy the Bugatti Factor ONE, starting at $23,599.
