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If you have been watching closely, you may have noticed manual gearboxes slowly making their way back into the supercar and hypercar space. And from the way things sound, Bugatti is very much interested in joining that movement.

Speaking to Road & Track during Monterey Car Week, CEO Mate Rimac indicated that a manual transmission is a genuine possibility for the future. When asked whether there is room for a Bugatti with a manual, Rimac replied emphatically, “Yes, definitely. Definitely. I agree one hundred percent. Imagine a V-16 with a manual. Real manual.”

That is quite a statement.

Although the V-16-powered Tourbillon was originally revealed with an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic and no manual option, Rimac’s remarks certainly suggest Bugatti is considering adding a stick-shift to the mix. What Rimac did not explain, however, was the exact form such a vehicle could take—whether it would be a one-off creation or something included within the wider Tourbillon line-up.

The Solitaire programme may be the more natural home for a project like this, as Bugatti’s one-off atelier is already producing remarkable builds based on production models. The first was based on the Chiron, while another shown at Monterey Car Week was based on the Bolide. As Bugatti starts unveiling Tourbillon-based Solitaire projects, introducing a one-off manual model would be a dramatic way to make an entrance. Even so, it would be slightly disappointing if that were the limit of it; we would love to see more than one three-pedal V-16 Bugatti out on the road.

One of the most revealing parts of Rimac’s comment is his use of the phrase “real manual.” In other words, Bugatti appears to have no interest in following Ferrari down the route of a simulated manual transmission, like the setup being offered in the 12Cilindri Manuale. Any Bugatti manual, it seems, would be the genuine article.