1931 Bugatti Type 55 Roadster
Coachwork by Figoni
Chassis no. 55221

Nobody is faster. Just a few weeks after the sensational record-breaking run undertaken by Bugatti – when for the first time a hyper sports car drove faster than 300 miles per hour – the French brand is showcasing a very special edition based on this new Chiron derivative: the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+.

Last Saturday evening, Bugatti presented the new model to a selected group of customers as the highlight of the celebrations to mark the 110 anniversary of the tradition-steeped company in Molsheim. The Chiron Super Sport 300+ played a very special role among numerous historic Bugatti models and the current Bugatti hyper sports cars of modern times, such as the Divo, La Voiture Noire, and the Centodieci.

Chiron Super Sport 300+ – the fastest Bugatti
The special edition Chiron Super Sport 300+, limited to 30 units, is visually based on the record-breaking car. A few weeks ago, it became the first series-production car to break the magical 300-miles-per-hour barrier. Achieving a speed of exactly 304.773 mph (490.484 km/h), it is now the fastest production hyper sports car ever. But not only that: With an output of 1,176 kW/1,600 hp, the Chiron Super Sport 300+ exceeds the Chiron by 100 hp.

“After the incredible speed record of more than 300 miles per hour, which we were the first series manufacturer to achieve, we're now offering our customers the Super Sport 300+ – a very special edition model and the fastest Bugatti ever”, says Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti. “But the Chiron Super Sport 300+ is more than just the fastest series-production sports car in the world. It is a testimony to Bugatti's technical refinement, masterly workmanship and enormous attention to detail.”

Aerodynamically optimised bodywork
The Chiron Super Sport 300+ is visually distinct from the Chiron, not least due to its extended and aerodynamically optimised body, which is designed for extremely high-speed travel beyond 420 km/h. The Air Curtains installed at the car’s front corners guide excess pressure developing at the front air inlets towards the sides of the hyper sports car. At the same time, air outlets on the wheel arch and directly behind the front wheels dissipate excess pressure from the wheel arch, creating a slight amount of negative lift at the front to reduce the drag. Modifications are also very prominent at the rear. The longer rear end, the so-called Longtail, allows the laminar flow to pass over the vehicle for longer to thus reduce the aerodynamic stall by over 40 percent. Thanks to a modified exhaust tailpipe configuration, the diffuser in the centre of the rear end can almost generate a sufficient amount of negative lift by itself, meaning that the wing can consequently remain retracted in Top Speed mode. As a result, the drag at the rear has been improved even more as negative lift generated by wings and spoilers would otherwise contribute to the drag.

The body is made of exposed, jet-black carbon fibre set through in the centre with racing stripes in Jet Orange.
The black engine cover is made of carbon, as is the windscreen wiper. At the front you can recognise the special model by the Bugatti “Macaron” logo made of genuine silver and black enamel. The extremely light magnesium wheels are finished in “Nocturne”, as are all trim parts. Passengers are welcomed with the lettering “Super Sport 300 +” in LED lighting at the door opening.

The interior is dominated by black carbon, leather and Alcantara in Beluga Black, complemented by colour highlights in Jet Orange. On the carbon door sills, the exclusive lettering likewise radiates in this colour, as do the headrests, the knee support in the centre console and the fine double-stitched seams. All interior trim parts on the other hand have a black anodised finish, while the rear-view mirror and centre line are painted in Beluga Black.

“With the Super Sport 300+ we pay homage not just to our glorious history with its numerous speed records but also to the performance of the entire record-breaking team. They were the ones who tackled the challenge of driving over 300 miles per hour,” says Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti. “For this reason, the Super Sport 300+ is more than just an edition. It is by far the fastest luxury hyper sports car in the world and a genuine Bugatti in every fibre of its being – uncompromisingly beautiful, fast, comfortable and exquisite.”

The Super Sport 300+ was showcased on Saturday evening as the grand finale of the Grand Tour, a rally that takes in the most important stages in the life of Ettore Bugatti – from Milan via Monaco and Paris to Molsheim in Alsace. The first vehicles of the limited edition model Super Sport 300+, restricted to 30 units, will be delivered to customers at a net unit price of 3.5 million euros in mid-2021.

Bugatti is the first manufacturer to break the 300-mile-an-hour barrier. On the Ehra-Lessien test track in Germany, a near production prototype derivative of the hyper sports car Chiron surpassed the magic limit with a speed of 304.773 mph (490.484 km/h). The world record was attained on August 2, by Bugatti's current test driver Andy Wallace. Andy Wallace is most famous for his races in sports cars, with most impressive the win in the 1988 Le Mans, together with Jan Lammers and Johnny Dumfries in the Jaguar. Wallace was also the driver for the then record-setting speed of 386.4 km/h (240.1 mph) in a McLaren F1, which for over 11 years was the world record for the fastest production car.

So, Bugatti has been just (successfully) obscuring the fact that they were working on attaining this record, the official statements were since the introduction of the Chiron, that no speed record attempt would be made...
On the downside, the record is not an official one for production cars (which still remains with the Koenigsegg Agera RS at 447.19 km/h (277.87 mph)), as the Chiron was modified. The Chiron used was in what is described by Bugatti as "near production" spec, modified with an additional safety cell and with aerodynamic changes and higher seventh-gear ratios, which we believe will be incorporated into a celebratory limited-edition model. It also used a slightly more powerful version of the regular Chiron's quad-turbocharged W-16 engine, turned up to produce 1600 hp, the same total made by the recently announced Centodieci.
However, the gap with the Koenigsegg is so large, that it can be assumed that a standard spec Chiron (with the 1600HP engine of the Centodieci) would also beat the official record.

The record was set in conjunction with Italian constructor Dallara, which makes the Chiron's body and developed the aerodynamic kit, and also Michelin which created the very special tires capable of dealing with such huge forces, rotating up to 4100 times a minute. The specially constructed Michelin Pilot Cup 2 tires were all X-rayed before being selected for use on the car.

"Inside the tires you've got these thin metal strands that go radially around the edge and which are sort of equidistant from each other," Wallace explained after the record run. "On quite a lot of tires there are one or two spots where these strands touch. It's not normally a problem, certainly not at the mandated speed limit, but when you start to go really fast with the huge gravitational force it's possible to get movement there, and temperature."

The 58-year-old British sports-car veteran and the team built up to the record speed over the course of more than a week, gradually increasing speeds to ensure that the car behaved according to the aerodynamic predictions and that lift and downforce were balanced. Yet that still meant huge forces running through the structure of the Chiron, as Wallace explains: "Zero net downforce front and rear sounds easy, as you've got the static weight of the car pushing down and that's more than heavy enough. But it doesn't mean the air is having no effect; it means there is close to 2000 kg [4409 pounds] on the top surface of the body trying to pick the car off the ground and another 2000 kg under the car trying to pull it back down: two fighting forces that come to four tons roughly, trying to separate the car. So you've got to be absolutely sure that everything on the car is secure enough to go this fast."

The other challenge was the gyroscopic effect created by the huge rotational speeds of the tires, something Wallace says only really begins to affect a car traveling at this huge speed. “At 200 mph you can barely feel it, but at 300 mph it's absolutely enormous,” said Wallace. "It's felt mostly on the front wheels and therefore the steering, like a spinning top when it starts to move it wants to continue to move."

As the Chiron increased speed, other unexpected challenges arrived. "They had resurfaced one end of the track at Ehra, and once you come down off the banking you're building up speed on the 8.8-km straight," he remembered, "then at exactly 447 km/h (277 mph) the car would go from the new surface to the old surface, and I got to calling this 'the jump'—it’s a bump that you'd barely notice in a normal car, but at those speeds it feels huge . . . If you go over that and land and there's a bit of a sidewind, then you can lose feeling and suddenly lose confidence."

Trust, of course, is the most important commodity for any driver attempting such high speeds, even with the Chiron's safety gear, a freshly swept track, and on-site medical intervention. "Any crash at that sort of speed is likely to hurt," Wallace admitted, deadpan. "I had a massive amount of trust in all the engineers and a lot of respect for all of them, likewise with Dallara and Michelin . . . when the project started we sat down and went through the risks, drawing a pyramid with the big ones at the bottom and trying to work out ways to eliminate them. But you can never get rid of them completely, and at the top you've still got 'sod's law'—something you just can’t control. If you did this enough times, it would get you, but if you trust the people you're working with, which I did 100 percent, then in the end you just do it."

After four days at Ehra-Lessien, the team had managed a peak speed of 482.5 km/h—299.8 mph—but was determined to break the 300-mph barrier. On what turned out to be the record-setting lap, Wallace remembers feeling more confident as the car went over "the jump"—"after it landed and had a bit of a weave about I thought it's the best it's been, the cross wind was a little bit less and I just kept it pinned. The strange thing is that there's a radar speed display half way down the straight but it's obviously never been calibrated for something that fast—I went past it and it flashed up 502 km/h (312 mph), but then I looked at my gauge and it was only doing 476 km/h (296 mph) on the GPS. So I kept my foot in and saw it get past 490 km/h (304 mph), but I was running short on room."

Ehra-Lessien's three-sided layout uses banked corners, with a speed limit of 200 km/h (124 mph) for the south bend at the end of the longest straight. "It's quite tricky to spot your braking point when you're doing 136 meters (446 feet) per second," Wallace admitted. "Then you have to slow down gently so you don't shift the aero too much and lose control of the car, when all your instincts are telling you to stand on the brake."

The Chiron went so fast on its record run that the telemetry system relaying time to the team couldn't keep up. For several minutes, Wallace was the only one who knew the record had fallen. "I saw the speed on the GPS and I was thanking everyone on the way back to the pit area over the radio," he said. "They couldn't work out why I was so happy—the fastest they'd seen was 479 km/h and we'd already done 482.5 km/h. Then I stop and they all dove into the recording equipment on the car and looked through it, found the speed, and they all went mental."

If it hadn't been for running out of space on the world's longest test-track straight, the Chiron could even have gone slightly quicker. "The speed trace hadn't leveled out, it was still climbing," Wallace says. Ehra-Lessien's position at just 165 feet above sea level also means the air is relatively dense: at higher altitudes the car would encounter less resistance. But while others may eventually go quicker, Bugatti has decided to drop the mic on record setting. The company confirmed it will "withdraw from the competition to produce the fastest serial-production cars."

"We have shown several times that we built the fastest cars in the world. In future we will focus on other areas," said Bugatti president Stephan Winkelmann in the official release on the record. "Bugatti was the first to exceed 300 mph. Its name will go down in the history books, and it will stay that way forever."

As for Wallace, where does reacquiring the world production record sit in the list of career highlights of a former Le Mans and Daytona winner?

“A lot of people will just say 'You drove a Bugatti at 300 mph; whoever you put in it could have done that,' and maybe that's even true," he said. "If you win at Le Mans or Daytona, then a lot more of what you were doing was down to the driver, I'm well aware of that. But when I think about it, it's pretty bloody cool. If somebody said to me even two years ago that I was going to go over 300 mph, I'd have thought they were out of their mind.”

"With Ferdinand Piëch Bugatti loses the biggest patron and a very good friend of the brand, a real Bugattisti. Without Ferdinand Piëch, Bugatti would not be where the company is today. His vision of a modern French luxury brand with stunning hypersports sprang from his creativity over 20 years ago. The entire workforce is deeply shaken and grieving for him,” says Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti. Throughout his life Ferdinand Piëch was interested in technical, complex matters. He died surrounded by his family, after a long and eventful and fruitful life.

Born in Vienna on April 17, 1937, Piëch was fascinated by technology since childhood, especially by kinetic technology. At the age of nine he was already able to drive a car. After graduating from school, he studied mechanical engineering in Zurich. As the grandson of Ferdinand Porsche and nephew of Ferry Porsche, Ferdinand Piëch joined the family business in 1963, working in various positions as an engineer at Porsche throughout his years. There he developed the legendary racing car 917. Later at Audi he was responsible for the first five-cylinder engine, the turbo diesel TDI and the quattro all-wheel drive. He developed individual engines as well as complete cars. In 1988 Piëch became CEO of Audi AG, and five years later the CEO of Volkswagen AG. While in this role, he in 1998 conducted the purchase of the naming rights of Bugatti; a brand that fascinated him from early on.

Elegance and Technology Inspired Ferdinand Piëch
The advanced technology of race cars like the Type 35, the elegance of a Type 41 Royal and the iconic beauty of a Type 57 SC Atlantic especially inspired Ferdinand Piëch. His idea for the reorientation of the legendary French brand came to him while on holiday, as he later explained. It was a sign of fate: In a small toy shop, Ferdinand Piëch wanted to buy his son Gregor a Rolls-Royce toy car. But the little one pointed to another model - a Bugatti Type 57 SC Atlantic. "For me it was a pointer to interest me for Bugatti and not only for Rolls-Royce and Bentley," he wrote. Both companies were for sale at the time.

Ferdinand Piëch became more involved in the company and spent months talking to the then-owner Romano Artioli. Piëch had a vision, as so often: "A concept like Bugatti must simply not be devalued by mass producing and tabloid methods," he wrote in his biography. "Bugatti has to always offer the extraordinary; the unsurpassed, the optimum. Only that is Bugatti. On top of the entire automotive world.” The brand had to be unique in the automotive world, each vehicle a solitaire.

Ferdinand Piëch Led Bugatti Back to the Forefront of Automotive Engineering
His approach was to lead Bugatti back to where it was in the twenties and thirties, at its height and to the position of the world's automotive leader. Ferdinand Piëch wanted to raise the known historical values; design, creativity, elite consciousness. This included performance and power to weight ratio. With the fourth design study Piëch and Bugatti were almost where they wanted: to transport the classic elegance of an Atalante into the modern age and to optimally equip the model’s technical feature. For him that meant: At least 1000 hp, at least 400 km/h top speed and the ability to drive directly from the racetrack to the opera, without being shame.

The first production-ready model, which was to meet the extraordinary requirements, needed a few years in advance. Bugatti embarked on new technical territory. The first prototype of the new hypersport Bugatti was showed in the autumn of 1998 at the Paris Motor Show, a year later, at the IAA in Frankfurt, a mid-engined coupe followed. Only half a year later, the French luxury brand presented the study 18/4 Veyron, named after the racing driver Pierre Veyron, who won in 1939 behind a Bugatti wheel in Le Mans. "I have never seen a car that is so excitingly sensual and so uncompromisingly sporty and therefore ideally suited to the renaissance of Bugatti," he writes in his biography. He was not wrong, as he seldom was. With the first Chiron 16/4, Bugatti smashed on the barriers of physics, perfectly implementing Piëch's requirements.

"Ferdinand Piëch is directly linked to the success of Bugatti. Our modern hypersports cars not only stand in the long tradition of Ettore Bugatti, but are also a legacy Piëch's outstanding achievement. We bow down to his creativity and genius. Our sympathy goes to his family,” expresses Stephan Winkelmann.

Low prices for automobiles however is something seen in most auctions... Classic cars rarely go over their estimates, and usually are much more closer to their lower estimate, than to their higher estimate.

In the line of special Chiron types, the latest one is called Centodieci, or "110" in Italian. Of course referring to the alleged 110th birthday of the marque, showing a lot of style elements of the EB110, and more precisely the EB110SS. For the occasion the engine was tickled a little further to 1600 HP (and a whopping 20kg was taken off it's weight), still I guess that the EB110SS would win from this one, at Le Mans... Much lighter weight, less fuel stops and less stops to change tyres.

This is in fact interesting, as the new "VW-Bugatti" marque tended to ignore the existence of the EB110 and EB112 altogether, in the first years. Now it seems that Mr. Winkelmann and colleagues embraced it, as part of the Bugatti history.

Where the special versions of the Veyron were merely a change of colour, wheels and interior (Veyron PurSang, Hermès Fbg, Sang Noir, Bleu Centenaire, L’Or Blanc, Grand Sport Venet, and a series of “Les Légendes de Bugatti”: Ettore Bugatti, Black Bess, Rembrandt Bugatti, Meo Costatini, Jean Bugatti and JP Wimille.), Bugatti now changes sufficient body panels to make it look like quite a different automobile. Thus the Divo and "La Voiture Noire" preceded this one.
Photographs of the Centodieci leaked out a few days before the car was presented at Pebble Beach, which must have been on purpose. If you're interested, all 10 cars have been already sold at around 8 million euro each.

Before presenting "La voiture Noire", the new VW-Bugatti company showed a lot of information and history about the T57SC Atlantic, which turned out to be the inspiration for that new design.

This time, Bugatti showed the last month a lot of images and info on Romano Artioli's EB110GT and EB110SS. Also, this year is the "110th anniversary" of the Bugatti brand, thus using the EB110 as inspiration for the new version of the Veyron would make sense.

During a recent interview, the EB110’s creator (below) revealed he would love to see Bugatti develop a tribute to the mid-engined supercar. So far, Bugatti hasn’t released any teaser photos of the new model, but Germany’s Auto Motor Und Sport has managed to obtain a partial design sketch (shown above) allegedly produced by Bugatti chief designer Achim Anscheidt, potentially showing what Bugatti’s next hypercar will look like.

Auto Motor Und Sport believes the internal design sketch was used on a greeting card from the Bugatti Design Studio, but this hasn’t been confirmed. Using the design sketch as a basis, the German publication has mocked up a render (pictured above) showing what the new hypercar tribute could look like when the covers come off at Pebble Beach.

Shown from the front, the distinctive crossbars in the grille are clearly inspired by the EB110 Super Sport but the quad headlights on each side of the hood have been vertically stacked, resulting in a striking appearance. We'll have to wait and see if the final car's design matches the render.

Well; luckily we do have a photograph of the finished car, be it just a part of it.. See below, this is one of the wheels, apparently of novel design, see below. In fact, it seems that part of the wheel is in fact located behind the large brake disc.

As proof that the current Bugatti does seek for inspiration in the EB110, are the photographs below of a Chiron alongside two racing Bugatti EB110SS's (Le Mans and IMSA, see this article from 1996 in the Bugatti Revue for more info), inside and outside the old Campogalliano factory, which in fact still exists and was not touched since it closed in 1995..

Romano Artioli was interviewed not long ago about what he thinks of this new revival. He is the Italian entrepreneur who revived Bugatti in the 1990s and launched the EB110 before it went bankrupt. A few years later the company was acquired by Volkswagen and launched the Veyron. He has revealed what he thinks about a modern interpretation of the EB110.

"I have read the rumors about a new Bugatti being presented in Pebble Beach and it being inspired in the EB110. I don’t know if that’s the truth, but if it were, it would mean a lot to me, to my whole family, and to my old companions at Bugatti Automobili,” he said. "The EB110SS was designed to last for a long time, into the future, and for this reason all the technical solutions that had been anticipated, today are present in the new Bugatti cars. I would be very pleased if even the design of the possible future Bugatti was inspired by the EB110SS, which is still contemporary. La Fabbrica Blu in Campogalliano, the EB110, but also the Lotus Elise - these were a dream come true for me, my life’s work.” Artioli recently came out with a book about these times.

While Artioli doesn’t know if the rumors are true, he believes the EB110 SS is long overdue a tribute car. "The EB110 was a car ahead of its time, 110% worthy of carrying the name Bugatti. I might not be the most impartial person in this matter, but no other car deserves a tribute more than the EB110.”

The EB110’s distinctive design was the work of Giampaolo Benedini. Artioli says he would like to see some of the car’s design elements applied to a modern car. "Giampaolo Benedini finished the design of the EB110 - as an architect! That’s quite uncommon in the automotive world, and it resulted in a very distinguished design of this super car,” he explained.

"The styling of the EB110 - especially evident in the Super Sport version - is a very graphical one. The memorable, graphical elements make it truly iconic. This Bauhaus style inspiration before that art tendency became popular. Also, design-wise, the EB110 was ahead of its time and nothing but a trendsetter.”

Today, Bugatti is better known for the Veyron and Chiron hypercars after the company was acquired by Volkswagen in 1998. But what does Artioli think of Bugatti’s current design direction? "Ferdinand Piech, maybe the last "Patron” figure of today’s automotive world took over the brand, and has it shaped to his idea, but always with respect of the long and proud Bugatti history. I think that’s the most important point.”

"The Veyron was and the Chiron are the absolute pinnacle of the automotive industry, the most powerful and the fastest supercars. By the way, the fact that Loris Bicocchi, our main test driver for the EB110 and employee number 7 at Bugatti Automobili, also helped test drive the Veyron and the Chiron, makes me proud!”

Back in January, Bugatti invited Artioli to Chateau Saint Jean, where he got to drive the Chiron. Was this when Bugatti revealed plans to Artioli to build an EB110 tribute car? "I had never been to Molsheim after Volkswagen had bought the rights to the Bugatti brand. So it was long overdue. It was an amazing experience to be received by Stephan Winkelmann and his team in the Château St. Jean and to test drive the Chiron. We exchanged a lot of ideas and stories, but no tribute or homage project was ever mentioned or presented to me.”

We’ll find out if the rumors are true when Bugatti unveils its latest project at Pebble Beach on August 16. Sadly, Artioli won’t be at the show, but he will still watch the premiere. "I wish I could. However, it is a very long journey that would take me away from my current projects for too long. I will, however, sit in front of the laptop to watch the live stream of the Bugatti press conference, as one more Bugatti enthusiast. Maybe even still the biggest one out there…”

Unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show this year, the La Voiture Noire was created as an one-off to celebrate the brand’s 110th anniversary and pay homage to the legendary Type 57SC Atlantic.

Underneath the bespoke bodywork, Bugatti’s latest bespoke creation uses the same underpinnings with the Divo and Chiron, including the quad-turbo 8.0-liter W16 powertrain. Its output remains unchanged, at 1479hp (1500PS) and 1180lb-ft (1600Nm) of torque.

‘La Voiture Noire’ is French for ‘The Black Car’, a node to the second Type 57SC Atlantic that was owned by Jean Bugatti himself and simply vanished, without anyone knowing what exactly happened to it.

Bugatti’s modern Black Car has also gained the title of the world’s most expensive new car of all time, as its owner has reportedly paid 16.7 million euros ($18.6 million in current exchange rates) for it. Speaking of its owner, it is believed to be ex-VW Group boss Ferdinand Piech, though that has neither been confirmed nor denied so far.

However, the hypercar is far from finished, with the car in the pictures being a prototype powered by a small electric motor for exhibition purposes. The finished item is still two to two-and-a-half years away from delivery, according to Bugatti’s head of communications Tim Bravo, so Mr. Piech, if he is indeed the owner, should be patient.

"It's clear that when you think about the second model, you always have to see what the body style could be. Believe me, we really looked into every detail of the body style, and I think that there is one that is very promising for a company like Bugatti. It's a body style which is not today on the market," company CEO Stephan Winkelmann told Motor1.

He didn't provide additional details. However, his statement seemingly rules out a long-rumored SUV, a sedan in the vein of the 16C Galibier concept, and a Chiron-like coupe. Regardless of what it looks like, it will arrive as a smaller, more affordable, and more daily-drivable car than the Chiron. That doesn't mean Bugatti will go into Toyota Supra territory, though. Its second model will cost at least $1 million.

The French automaker previously confirmed its quad-turbocharged, 16-cylinder engine has nearly reached the end of its life cycle. What will power the Chiron's successor remains to be seen, and Bugatti still has time to figure it out, but the second model could go in a completely different direction.

"This could be, for example, a full electric car," Winkelmann said. He added a Bugatti-badged EV would need to be "the best of its kind."

Bronze, brown patina on marble pedestal. 42.5 x 76.5 x 31 cm (including marble pedestal).

Signed below the athlete: R Bugatti and dated: (1)907 (stamped), lower left of it foundry mark of A.A. Hebrard Cire Perdue and numbered: 1 (stamped).

Originally it was intended to realise the 'Athlete nu au repos' three times. According to the catalogue reaisonne and the current research this is the only copy.

Estimate €1,000,000 - €1,400,000

Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen GmbH, Munich, Germany
For bidding

According to the Allegheny County Department of Emergency Services, the fire started on the building’s first floor when a man was working on a motorcycle that caught fire.

Ross Godber, owner of Ross Godber’s Victory Garage, said he "was working on a Bentley in his space on the first floor of the warehouse when he heard several loud bangs,” the newspaper reported.

“Mr. Godber’s space was near an exit, so he got into a Ferrari and drove it out of the building. He ran back inside to try to save the three other vehicles he was working on – the Bentley, which he said was worth $325,000 when it was new; a 1947 Dodge sedan, which was in the middle of restoration; and a 1995 Ford F-250, which he was trying to convert into a monster truck – but the flames and smoke were too strong.

Mr. Godber said he thinks the Ferrari might be the only vehicle that survived the fire. He said he has heard that the vehicles lost in the fire total around $60 million.

From Hubert Lance Huet I received the photographs above of the Bugatti T35B which was probably the one destroyed in the fire. I have no further info on this car, and if it is (was...) original or not.

The car will be on display at the Bugatti Trust as part of its summer exhibition 'Jean Bugatti and Jean-Pierre Wimille – Prescott 80 years ago', which will run until September this year. The exhibition is one of a number of festivities marking 90 years since the founding of the Bugatti Owners' Club, the oldest Bugatti club in the world. The club also owns and operates Prescott, as well as being based there.

This year also marks the 80th anniversary of a remarkable part of Prescott's history. On Sunday July 30, 1939, it held its first ever international meeting, a Bugatti Owners' Club event, and this very returning Works monoposto Type 59 fitted with an 8-cylinder supercharged 4.7-litre type 50B engine Works 59/50B Bugatti not only took part, legendary grand prix driver Jean-Pierre Wimille was behind the wheel.

Jean Bugatti accepted an invitation to attend the 1939 Prescott hillclimb meeting and he brought with him his famous works driver Wimille, who was fresh from winning the Le Mans 24 Hours for the second time.

The 59/50B had without doubt the most powerful engine built by the factory and was fitted with twin rear wheels specially for the Gloucestershire hill climb's challenges.

Motor Sport's report from the event at the time called it "a truly beautiful car".
"So wide was it, twin shod at the rear, that it could not use the return road,” the report continued. "Wimille wore a beret and drove with great care and polish, clocking 46.69sec on his second run, after an initial ascent in 47.50sec, excellent times on this course for such a powerful car.

"Afterwards, Wimille watched other climbs in company with Earl Howe and Jean Bugatti."

Despite the unsuitability of his car Wimille still got the event's second fastest time, shy only of Raymond Mays' ERA which stopped the clock at 46.14sec.

Afterwards Jean Bugatti wrote to apologise for using such an incompatible car for the course and promised to return the following year with one of his new 1-litre machines.

The onset of the Second World War just five weeks later ensured this was not to be; further the 59/50B was only driven one more time, in 1945 again by Wimille at the Coupe des Prisonniers in the Bois de Boulogne in Paris.

It was retained by the factory until it was acquired by the Schlumpf brothers for their Cité de l'Automobile museum in Mulhouse, France. It has now been loaned by that collection to Prescott.

This year's anniversary events also include the Bugatti Trust joining the festivities of Prescott's popular annual French and Italian themed 'La Vie en Bleu' weekend, taking place on May 25-26. It is anticipated that over 90 Bugattis will be present at that.

"We are delighted that the Works 59/50B Wimille Bugatti will make an historic return to Prescott," said general manager of the Bugatti Owners' Club, Chris Rogers. "The Bugatti Owner's Club and Prescott Hill Climb have played a significant role in the history of the car and its famous French driver Jean-Pierre Wimille."

Photographs: Jean-Pierre Wimille at the 1939 Prescott hill climb in his Works 59/50B Bugatti
Published in: motorsportmagazine.com
Images courtesy of The Bugatti Trust

Bugatti is looking to introduce a second, more affordable model of car to its current multimillion-dollar lineup, Bugatti President Stephan Winkelmann revealed in an interview.

Winkelmann characterized it not as a mere halo car but as a best-in-segment daily driver with a top-line price to match—and it would be at least partially electric.

“There I would see us doing a battery electric vehicle,” he said of the proposed new car. “There, the balance between performance and comfort is much more important, and it’s about daily usability. This is what I see.”

Face-melting speed in this second car “will be far less important,” he said.

Of course, these terms are all highly relative, considering the US$3-million Chiron comes with 1,500 horsepower and a top speed of 420 km/h. Any new Bugatti will still cost a lot: It stands to reason that even a far “lesser” creation could cost half a million dollars and pack an 800-hp punch.

Winkelmann declined to give more specifics about the cost, chassis, and performance of the potential car but said the company has already begun analyzing the prospect. “Let’s see what we can do,” he said. “I’m hoping for the best.”

There is room to expand, even with the beaucoup business million-dollar cars like the Bugatti Chiron and Divo already provide. The average Bugatti customer has 42 cars at home, according to a Bugatti spokeswoman, and often two of them are Bugattis. More than half of the 250 Chirons made were purchased sight-unseen—an astounding figure considering the astronomical price tag.

In North America and Europe, billionaire populations are are growing by 17 percent and 18 percent respectively, according to Knight Frank’s 2019 Wealth Report. In Asia, there will be 1,003 billionaires by 2023, a 27-percent increase from 2018 and more than a third of the world’s 2,696 total billionaire population. Since 2009, sales of automobiles costing more than $180,000 has quadrupled, according to IHS Markit.

“At the end of the day, the difference of the price in a car is the brand,” Winkelmann said of how the new model may be positioned within the Volkswagen Group. “And this I think will stay the same, fortunately for us. I’m convinced about this.”

Bugatti would hardly be the first classic brand to attempt evolution and relevance via electric and/or halfway practical vehicles. Ferrari and Lamborghini had long eschewed deigning to make less-expensive sportscars and – gasp! – SUVs in volume plays that would bolster their tiny global outputs (formerly sub-5,000 units).

But in the past few years Lamborghini incorporated the Urus SUV into its lineup, and Ferrari executives said last week in Geneva they are working on a hybrid supercar of their own. (Recall, Ferrari introduced the hybrid LaFerrari six years ago.) These moves effected no discernible impact in terms of “damaging” a storied brand.

The real challenge will be to develop an electric vehicle with either significantly improved range or more exotic technology than the much-hyped Porsche Taycan, another sibling in the VW Group family and one that will be on the road before the end of 2019.

Any new vehicle from Bugatti would likely borrow extensively from VW Group hardware such as the Premium Platform Electric architecture to be used by Porsche, Bentley and Audi—but with a badge like Bugatti’s, it better provide an amplified experience.

In the meantime, a lot can happen. Even if Winkelmann gets the green light from Volkswagen AG, the prospect of an underling Bugatti remains far from reality.

He doesn’t yet have approval from the Volkswagen board, which can be difficult to procure. It took years of lobbying from Bentley and Lamborghini to get the go-ahead to make an SUV. (For the record, Bentley “won” that battle: It got the okay to make its Bentayga before Lamborghini produced the Urus.)

If and when Winkelmann gets a yes, it will take another four years of development before a second Bugatti family line hits the road.

Might as well start saving money now.

500 limited-edition junior Bugatti cars built to celebrate the brand’s 110th anniversary

What Ettore and Jean had intended as a one-off car, became an official Bugatti vehicle. The feedback from customers visiting Molsheim had been so positive that it went into production and was sold between 1927 and 1936. The Bugatti ‘Baby’ was born. Cherished by Bugatti enthusiasts worldwide, today no collection is complete without a Baby. However, with only around 500 ever made, they have been the preserve of the lucky few. Until now.

To celebrate Bugatti’s 110th anniversary, we are introducing the smallest member of the Bugatti family: the Baby II. A contemporary tribute to Ettore’s masterpiece, the Baby II will be a strictly limited run: only 500 cars will be built. Unlike the original, which was only suitable for the youngest drivers, the Baby II is a three-quarters-size replica of the Bugatti Type 35 so it can be driven by both adults and children. The Baby II will allow automobile enthusiasts from across generations to share the love of driving and of the classic marque of Bugatti.

Launching almost a century after its predecessor, the Baby II has been created using the latest technology, but with the utmost respect for Bugatti’s automotive heritage. Hand-built, the car was designed with the aid of a precise digital scan of an original Type 35, built for the 1924 French Grand Prix in Lyon.

Just like the original Baby, the Baby II has a rear-wheel-drive battery-powered electric powertrain. Unlike its predecessor, the Baby II features removable lithium-ion battery packs, a limited slip differential and even regenerative braking. The junior car will come with two selectable power modes for drivers of different statures: a 1kW ‘child mode’ with the top speed limited to 20 km/h, and a 4kW ‘adult mode’ with the top speed limited to 45 km/h. In addition, for those enthusiasts who crave even more pace, an optional ‘Speed Key’ upgrade is available (just like the Speed Key for its big brother, the Chiron!), which allows power of up to 10kW and disengages the speed limiter.

There willl be some more 21st century updates: so what was the fuel pressure pump once upon a time is going to be the forward and reverse switch, the charge cable goes in where the petrol used to, and battery packs now reside where the Type 35 engine once did. But the handbrake on the outside stays, which should work nicely in conjunction with the most powerful drive mode. There are nods to more modern Bugattis as well, with a solid silver badge like a Chiron (albeit weighing just 50g, not 140g as in that car). And while not complete just yet, the interior will feature dials by Swiss Instruments and a removable steering wheel.

The cockpit of the Baby II features Bugatti’s signature turned aluminium dashboard, a leather seat, a scale recreation of the Type 35’s distinctive four-spoke steering wheel and custom Bugatti instruments. The exterior of the car is painted in traditional French Racing Blue, although buyers will be able to order in a range of alternative colours. The signature eightspoke aluminium alloy wheels are scale replicas of Ettore Bugatti’s ground-breaking 1924 design, and house modern brakes on each wheel. Finally, powerful headlights (not shown on Geneva Motor Show images) light the way ahead for drivers young and old, whether you’re exploring new landscapes or lapping the local karting track.

Despite being the smallest member of the Bugatti family, the Baby II has a lot in common with its bigger brothers. Proudly displayed on the nose of the car is Bugatti’s famous ‘Macaron’ badge, made of 50g of solid silver, just like the Chiron. Each car comes with a limited-edition numbered plaque and cars ordered in 2019 will also incorporate a badge to commemorate Bugatti’s "110th" anniversary.

Prices start at 30,000 euros (plus taxes and delivery) and production starts in autumn / fall 2019. Join the exclusive club of Baby owners and help write the next chapter in the prestigious history of Bugatti.

Reservations for build slots open at 9am today, 11th March 2019 via: contact@bugattibaby.com

Bugatti: with our history at heart and our eyes on the future

Bugatti celebrates its 110th anniversary with two world premieres at Geneva Motor Show

Meanwhile, Bugatti has been presenting overviews of each T57SC Atlantic built (Chassis 57374, 57453, 57473 and 57 591) , and presented various drawings like the one below. They even showed some footage and stills of the movie "Overdrive" in which as we know a replica Atlantic was used in some hot car-action scenes, something you would not do with an original. Any of the two remaining fully original Bugatti Atlantics will be worth upward of 30 million euro, so you may even call this modern version a steal at just 16....

So, if you add this all up, I can predict that Bugatti will present a new model, with design inspirations coming from the original Bugatti T57SC Atlantic, and probably called Atlantic as well.
However, as we have seen with the DIVO, it may also be a just slightly changed chassis of the Chiron, with some new body-panels....

110 years. Scarcely any other luxury car brand can look back on as long a tradition as Bugatti. The French hyper sports car manufacturer is celebrating this fantastic anniversary with a special edition of the Chiron Sport limited to 20 cars. This new edition is not only extremely exclusive but also pays tribute to France.

“With the limited Chiron Sport ‘110 ans Bugatti’, Bugatti is ushering in the 110th anniversary of its foundation. At the same time, we are underlining our origin and our French roots in Molsheim,” says Stephan Winkelmann, President of Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. “Molsheim in the Alsace region of France is an essential element in Bugatti’s brand history and this is also where we are planning our future.” Tricolour decorates the “110 ans Bugatti” in tribute to France

The new Chiron Sport “110 ans Bugatti” bears one of the most famous symbols of a proud nation. The French tricolour “Le Bleu-Blanc-Rouge”, with its colours of blue, white and red, decorates the body and interiors at several points and harmonizes perfectly with the extraordinary Chiron Sport. The flag originally symbolized the union between monarch and people in the phase of the constitutional monarchy. Since the end of the monarchy, it has represented the French Revolution with its famous ideals of liberty (blue), equality (white) and fraternity (red).

2019 marks the centenary for the final completion of the Bugatti Diatto AVIO which has lain dormant since 1919.

In 1914 Bugatti told select clients that he was ready to create a luxury vehicle to surpass any known automobile. This coincided with Bugatti’s design of the AVIO 8C aero engine - his first experiment with a straight 8 engine.

Historians see this WW1 aero-engine more as an automobile engine than solely for aviation. Indeed, they deduce that this massive 14.5 litre AVIO 8C engine may be regarded as the prototype for Ettore Bugatti’s Royale engine.

In 1915-1925 Ettore Bugatti was actively working together with Diatto’s capable technical team and using Diatto’s factory as test facility for his new ideas. In 1919, following the First World War, attention turned to car production and development of the AVIO aero-engine ceased – but obviously was not forgotten.

Later this 8-cylinder aero-engine, along with a big Diatto chassis, were discovered in a museum in Turin, Italy. The project had never been finished, and how it found its way to the museum was a mystery. It is this project that after a century has finally been completed – to be revealed at Retromobile 2019.

HISTORY – the amazing chronology of Bugatti’s first 8-cylinder prototype:

1900: Ettore Bugatti established direct affiliations with Pietro Diatto.
1907: Pietro Diatto became involved with Bugatti’s Type 8 prototype – later Deutz. It is important to understand that close links existed between talented automotive engineers of the pioneering years.
1913: Roland Garros told his friend, Ettore Bugatti, that he planned to attempt flying across the Atlantic. Bugatti replied: "Why not!" So, they began tackling the problem.
At the same time Bugatti wrote select clients, that he was ready to create a luxury vehicle that would surpass any known automobile. His design was essentially two enlarged Garros Bugatti 5-litre engines in line totalling 14.5 litres.
1914: Bugatti was commissioned by the French government to design an aeroengine, and based on his preliminary design for an 8-cylinder luxury vehicle engine he designed a 250HP aero-engine in his Paris workshop.
This was Bugatti’s first 8-cylinder engine ever, and historians such as Hugh Conway states that the AVIO 8C can be regarded as the prototype for Bugatti’s remarkable Royale engine.
1915: Diatto was granted license for production of the Bugatti aero-engine in Italy, then known as the AVIO 8C.
1919: Diatto began license production of Bugatti Brescias. Diatto took 1st prize in the first Italian post-war race, with “a Type 30 Bugatti in the name of Diatto”.
1920: The famous hollow front axle was developed in Italy by Bugatti in collaboration with Coda and Casarata, Coda was Guiseppe Coda, the Technical Director at Diatto. This hollow front axle was successfully tested on Diatto racing cars of the period.
1921: Diatto began experimenting with superchargers on Diatto racing engines, including the 16-valve Brescia engine. Clearly Bugatti and Coda were testing ideas and technology together.
Period references tell that Bugatti worked closely with Technical Director, Guiseppe Coda, and used the Diatto facilities to test his new ideas until 1925.
1924: Bugatti began development of the Royale car, launched in 1926.

It is therefore with great pride that finally after 100 years we are able to present The Lost Bugatti:

BUGATTI DIATTO AVIO 8C 1919

The unique and historically important prototype 8-cylinder Bugatti
- an early test bed of the Bugatti Royale

Jean Prick, son of the famous Bugattiste (No 1) Guillaume Prick, co-founder of the Dutch Bugatti club, and organizer of the first international Bugatti rally in 1958 from Neercanne (close to Maastricht) to the Le Mans 24 hours, had always had a tremendous passion for Bugatti. His house (he had moved from Maastricht to Belgium) was filled with all kinds of Bugatti parts, memorabilia, books and of course the T57 Ventoux which he had inherited from his father. Many of these items he would take to the Mecc each January (where he would try to sell some also), together with usually 3 to 5 Bugattis, alongside his own, there would be usually a few from friends in Belgium or the Netherlands. Centerpiece would be a table, where coffee (and sandwiches) would be presented to anybody who showed a real interest in Bugatti. A long way from "VIP-lounges" where one is welcome only after special invitation, and waving a cheque-book.

He had been a professional photographer all his life, with his own shop in the center of Maastricht, thus everybody from Maastricht knew him, not just the Bugattistes! Of course, often Bugattis were the subject of his craft also!

In the Netherlands, he will remain forever famous because of an interview with him in the TV-show "Showroom" from 1980, where people with special hobbies were presented. Even now, almost 40 years later, whenever talking about your Bugatti - interest to anybody, he (or she) would recall that TV show! The crucial scene in that show was when he started crying, because his father had forbidden him to ever drive any of his Bugattis again (for the slight mistake of running a red light in the center of Hamburg at 160 km/h).

Personally, I have known him for quite a few years, always friendly, always interested in anything Bugatti. The last time I saw him was in 2018, where he was in his Bugatti stand, as usual. I know of quite a few people who went to the show just for him, and the Bugattis on his stand! Jean had become a member of the Bugatti Aicraft Association soon after it was founded. In 2008 we held a meeting with 8 members at his house, where the Bugatti airplane was one subject, and Bugatti powered boats another. On the occasion, he was presented with an original print of the Type 67 V16 Aero engine.

Jean, you will be much missed!

The top photo alongside his Ventoux I took on his stand at Interclassics in the MECC, Maastricht, January 2018, the other two were taken during the BAA meeting in 2008.

In 1926, second owner Marjory Honeybone was given the car as an eighteenth birthday present by her husband, Ken. The Bugatti then had three further owners – John L Mundy, Keith R McConachy, and Henry B Thomas, in that order – before being taken to and registered in Victoria in 1943 by Bryan Butler. A prominent New South Wales Bugatti owner and partner in Nolan & Butler, motor trim suppliers with a branch in Melbourne, Bryan Butler used the car regularly in VSCC competition in New South Wales immediately after WW2 alongside '2566', the two cars being shared with his brother, John.

'2064' was returned to Victoria in the early 1950s and next owned by Bon Batchelor followed by Graeme Steinfort. Complete but in poor condition, it was beautifully restored in Victoria in the 1970s by John Porter. Since 1985 the Bugatti has been owned and regularly used by the current owner, noted marque authority Peter McGann, author of Brescia Bugatti and co-author with Bob King of Bugattis in Australia and New Zealand 1920-2012.

A much loved car equally at home on the highway or on its way to the local coffee shop, '2064' has benefited from considerable restoration works since its acquisition some 34 years ago. Not the least of these was the removal of the 'bridge' behind the front seats, which restricted legroom for both driver and passenger. This was done circa 2000 when further changes were made to the body frame to increase the internal width of the passenger compartment. At the same time new bucket seats were installed; the body re-skinned with fresh fabric; the interior re-trimmed; and the car re-sprayed.

In 2015 the engine (number '481') was completely dismantled, with any worn or defective parts replaced prior to re-assembly. Prior to 2015 a new camshaft of slightly higher performance than standard had been fitted; the valve gear overhauled; new 'banana' tappets fitted; a new oil pump installed; and both magnetos rewound (original components with car). The running gear too has benefited from regular maintenance over the years. Components renewed include the crown wheel and pinion; rear brake back plates; wheel bearings; brake drums and linings; clutch plate set and thrust bearing; wheel bearings; and tyres (a fully detailed list of all works is available).

Included with the car are two packages. One contains many of the original parts that have been replaced over the years, while the other contains the following books: a copy of the original chassis handbook as issued by the factory; a copy of the Brescia spare parts book; a copy of Brescia Bugatti, a copy of Bugattis in Australia and New Zealand 1920 to 2012; and a copy of Bugatti Passion (the history of the Bugatti Club in Australia).

1935 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Faux Cabriolet, Chassis no. 57252

• One of only three Type 57s completed with Atalante coachwork
• The only known survivor
• Original chassis, engine, gearbox, and body, etc - all numbered and matching
• From the collection of the late Barry Burnett

This fine Bugatti Type 57 – number '57252' – started life as one of 10 'Grand Raid' two-seater sports roadster chassis but actually left the factory as one of three completed with Atalante coachwork. As we have seen, the Type 57 had been intended as a Grande Routière rather than an out-and-out sports car. However, during the autumn of 1934 Bugatti began exploring the possibility of a building a Type 57 two-seater roadster, and on 15th September 1934 a design (number '1067') for such a model was produced. By the time the car was presented at the Paris Salon de l'Automobile in October '34, the name 'Grand Raid' had been adopted.

This car carries the earliest chassis number of the three Atalante versions made; the fate of the other two cars is not known. It should be noted that the name 'Atalante' was not recorded in the sales register until later on; early examples, including the three mentioned above, were classified simply as 'faux cabriolet' (i.e. fixed-head coupé). Factory records list the coachwork as 'Usine Fx cabriolet'.

In 1956 the Bugatti was purchased from Dovaz by Jean De Dobbeleer, who sold it on in 1957 to a collector named Greenlee in the USA. Greenlee was followed by John North (1979), then Messrs Dixon, Jones, Guido Artom (Italy, 1988), Peter Rae (in the UK) and the late Barry Burnett (from 2008). Barry acquired the Type 57 from Peter Rae as a straight swap for a unique Delage.

Unusually, 57252' retains its original chassis, engine (number '195'), gearbox, and body, etc, all numbered and matching. The only component that has been changed is the rear axle/differential; indeed, the failure of the original differential in the 1950s and the Bugatti's resulting immobility is what preserved it in such remarkably complete and original condition. Apart from some private correspondence on file, '57252' has evidently been relatively unknown for the last 50 years, even to the extent that it has been referred to as 'whereabouts unknown' in the last two authoritative works on the Type 57s and Grand Raid cars by Pierre Yves Laugier and by Simon/Kruta.

'57252' was completely restored during Peter Rae's ownership, there being numerous related invoices on file. Dating from 2005 to 2008, they were issued by various recognised specialists including SCA Classic Restoration, Mitchell Motors, KA Developments, Coachbuilt Horsepower Ltd, Ian Skinner Coachbuilding, Crosthwaite & Gardiner Ltd, Ivan Dutton, and Tula Engineering, the latter being responsible for the engine rebuild. Over £100,000 was spent on the engine alone!

The car was restored with extremely close attention paid to conservation and originality; everything possible has been conserved and every single component refurbished to the very highest possible standard. Sadly, the wings had endured a hard life and were deemed unusable, so new examples were faithfully fabricated to the original pattern. The complete rear axle was replaced using what is believed to be the last 'new old stock' example available, and the Bugatti also benefits from an overdrive conversion and fluid-filled damper by Ivan Dutton. This car now carries the registration 'DYF 4', which once graced the Type 57S belonging to Sir Malcolm Campbell.

Following a period in storage, the Bugatti has recently been serviced and brought to running condition by Edwards Motorsport. Offered with a comprehensive history file, this exceptional Type 57 Atalante would be an ideal candidate for touring, rallies, leisure driving and any of the world's most prestigious concours events: Pebble Beach, Villa d'Este, Amelia Island, etc.