Bugatti History

Ettore Bugatti founded the Italian car maker Bugatti in 1909. The company was known for its combination of superb engineering with artistic design. Ettore came from a very artistic family, with a father who was an Art Nouveau jewelry and furniture designer. Bugatti was also well-known for its sporting success. A Bugatti car won the first Monaco Grand Prix, and Bugatti cars also won the 24 hours of Le Mans in both 1937 and 1939.

Bugatti created cars that were beautiful as well as highly engineered. He famously compared his main motor racing rival, Bentley's, cars to high speed lorries since they were so much heavier and more rugged than his own vehicles. Some of the best known Bugatti models were the Royale, the Type 35 Grand Prix, the Type 55 and the Type 57 Atlantic. Only a few cars of each type were produced.

Bugatti began his career as a car designer working for the engineering firm Prinetti and Stucchi. He designed a three wheel car within his first year which was highly successful as a sports car. Bugatti then designed a four engine machine, but his firm was not interested in manufacturing it, so he left.

In 1899, Bugatti obtained funding from the Gulinelli brothers. When he was just 19, he created his first real car, which generated a huge amount of attention around Europe. Bugatti's car had a four cylinder overhead valve engine, a four speed gearbox, a contact battery ignition and a chain drive. On the basis of his success, Bugatti was able to move between contracts with a number of different manufacturers. During this time, he was able to experiment and refine his ideas.

In 1909, Bugatti established his own factory in Alsace. The first car he produced was a small vehicle that he took to Le Mans in 1911. Although it was much smaller than the other cars in the race, it had much greater maneuverability, and it came in second to the Fiat vehicle. Bugatti's success at Le Mans attracted a lot of new orders.

In 1914, the First World War interrupted Bugatti's business. Burying his three racing cars under his home, he fled with his family to Italy. Bugatti then moved on to Paris, where he worked on the design of aircraft engines, alongside many other car designers. Bugatti engines were used in many American planes. At the end of the war, Bugatti returned home and rescued his race cars from underground. He began producing cars again. His business continued to be very successful, and he was a well-known local figure, who was called Le Patron. Bugatti took an interest in every aspect of the design and manufacture of his cars.

Meanwhile, his son, Jean, took over the management of Bugatti's racing. Bugatti cars continued to be incredibly successful, winning many races between 1925 and 1938. In just the years 1925 and 1926, Bugatti vehicles won more than 1000 races. Their combination of speed and agility was highly successful. The Second World War saw Bugatti move to Paris again. He continued designing cars, however, although they could not be produced during the war. Bugatti was involved with the French Resistance, and it was a Bugatti 57-5 that enabled Resistance leader Robert Benoist to escape capture by speeding away from a German convoy. After the war, Bugatti hoped to begin producing cars again, but he died in 1947, before he was able to create any more cars.

No Bugatti cars have been manufactured since 1940, but this is still one of the most beloved names for many lovers of classic cars. The Volkswagen Group manufactures cars in Alsace under the brand name Bugatti Automobiles SAS, after purchasing the rights to the Bugatti name in 1998. Volkswagen also purchased Lamborghini, the Crewe Rolls-Royce factory and the Bentley brand at about the same time. TheOnceProject.com has plenty of information about the histories of other car manufacturers, including Rolls-Royce and Bentley.