If the only thing stopping you buying the €1m (£890,000) Bugatti Veyron is the fact that it has just two seats, then worry no more. The Bugatti 16C Galibier is destined to bring Veyron-type performance to the relatively sedate world of four-seat saloons. Though described only as a concept, it was revealed in fully functioning form at this weekend’s Bugatti centenary bash at the company’s factory in Molsheim, France.

When the mighty Veyron arrived in 2005, the 987bhp Bugatti introduced a level of performance to the world of hypercars that seems just as shocking now as it did then. The Veyron’s (limited) 253mph top speed has only once been bettered by a production car — the SSC Ultimate Aero — and few machines have even come close to offering the pulverising acceleration a Veyron possesses once full boost hits home. The Veyron’s true genius, which even the Ultimate Aero cannot match, is the way it delivers this outlandish performance with an all-enveloping feeling of luxury washing over its occupants.

Now Bugatti wants to bring these same qualities to a four-door hypercar, capable of equally stunning performance but also able to carry out the school run.

Make no mistake, this is a big car. It is well over 16ft long, but thanks to the main structure being made of carbon fibre (with the rest of the panels, including front wings and doors, fashioned from aluminium) the car has been designed to be as light as possible. One of the many surprises with the Bugatti Galibier is that it has a hatchback rear rather than a separate boot, which as well as being more practical, helps give a clean look to the back of the car.

The central ridge running the length of the Galibier is reminiscent of one of the most beautiful Bugatti road cars, the pre-war Type 57 Atlantique, and creates one of the new car’s most distinctive features. Even the rear window is bisected by this central ridge, allowing the designers to fit a vertical LED brake light running straight through the middle of the rear screen.

The final design flourish at the back of the car is the sight of no fewer than eight exhausts, bunched in two groups of four, poking out from either side. They not only look terrific, they emit a beautiful growl on start-up and, according to Bugatti personnel, there is every chance they’ll make it through to production.

The Galibier will be powered by fundamentally the same 8-litre, 16-cylinder engine as is found in the Bugatti Veyron but instead of having four turbochargers boosting the cylinders, it’ll have twin superchargers. The reason, Bugatti engineers say, is to offer the Galibier driver even more low-end grunt than the turbochargers afford, and this extra torque is more in keeping with the enhanced, more luxurious role of the new car. Headline power is expected to be slightly down on the Veyron’s attention-grabbing 987bhp but, even so, close on 900bhp is likely, so a 0-60mph time of less than 3sec and a top speed of 240mph is technically possible.

Another nice touch on the Galibier is that the engine can be viewed beneath two electronically controlled, full-length flaps on either side of the bonnet. They work independently and allow an owner to show off the mighty W16 engine to maximum effect with just the touch of a button.

Once you slide inside, you enter a world beyond any car on sale today. In front of the driver is the familiar Bugatti steering wheel from the Veyron, but that is the only item left untouched. Sitting just behind the wheel is an LCD screen that acts as an information display for the sat nav and various monitoring functions. In the centre sweep of the ultra-clean, almost vertical dash are two large dials, one displaying the engine power being generated (calibrated up to 900bhp) while beside it sits a speedo that runs all the way round to 390kmh (242mph). Sitting below these two central dials is another, removable, LCD screen displaying all the audio functions available, as well as heating and ventilation options.

Between the front seats and running through into the rear is a large central bench, topped by a beautiful maple-wood veneer, which at the front houses simple, push-button controls for the eight-speed automatic, four-wheel-drive transmission.

If one of the rear-seat passengers presses a button on the side of this console, a flush-fitting LCD screen rises from between the two front seats, turns through 90 degrees and allows the passengers to watch films or connect to the internet.

Each of the four seats is identical, with the rear two independent from each other. Leather covers almost every available surface, even the floor, while the bottom of the doors, speaker covers and floor mats are made from the same coloured leather but cut into strips and beautifully woven.