Bugatti – Driven To Write

All Aboard!

Leaving the car keys on the kitchen counter for a change and boarding a train…

…but with a twist, in that the rail vehicles described here today are well and truly connected to the car business. In the course of the twentieth century, several car manufacturers and one important supplier thereof have entered the train manufacturing realm for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it was a case of simple survival after economic depression or war undermined their existing business, other times it was a way of promoting the virtues of a core product, or an attempt to Continue reading “All Aboard!”

Sic Transit Gloria Mundi

We recall the ill-fated 1987 revival of Bugatti and celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of the one car it produced, the extraordinary EB110 hypercar.

Bugatti is undoubtedly one of the most revered names in the automotive firmament. The company’s heyday was its first era, under the ownership of Ettore Bugatti, its eponymous founder. Bugatti was born in Milan in 1881, the son of a successful Art Nouveau furniture designer. Although he chose engineering as his profession, an innate understanding and appreciation of fine art was very much part of both his genetic inheritance and upbringing, with renowned sculptors, painters and architects in his extended family. This would manifest itself in a series of cars that were not only technically accomplished, but things of great beauty that are still held in the highest regard today. Continue reading “Sic Transit Gloria Mundi”

Body of Evidence (part 3)

Unfinished sympathy.

The completed Type 64 recreation at the Mullin Museum. (c) fineartamerica

The mysterious power of the Bugatti nameplate has over the years, led a significant number of individuals to part with often huge sums of money, often to little lasting effect. In addition, the carmaker’s legend comes freighted with tales of hubris, stark reversals of fortune, suicide and accidental death. It is therefore, with some caution that one ought to approach the fabled name so intrinsically linked with speed, glamour, elegance, indulgence, and the town of Molsheim, Alsace.

We therefore return to the unbodied Type 64 chassis and the stark dilemma it posed for new owner, Peter Mullin. Firstly, given that the chassis itself won a best in show award at Pebble Beach in 2013, it was considered the utmost vandalism to cover it with a body, especially so many years after its creation. But having convinced himself that it would be appropriate to Continue reading “Body of Evidence (part 3)”

Body of Evidence (Part 2)

Reanimations are nothing new when it comes to Bugatti.

Bugatti Type 101 by Gangloff. (c) wheelsage

Just because Ettore Bugatti could be accused of the sin of hubris, doesn’t necessarily mean his ending was neither poignant nor salutary. The demise of the Bugatti car business proved to be a somewhat convoluted one in the final analysis, complicated by the fact that Ettore had essentially been locked out of Molsheim since the bitter disputes of the mid-1930s.

Having retreated to Paris to plot his return, war had intervened and with the disputed area of Alsace quickly annexed by German forces, Ettore had little choice other than to Continue reading “Body of Evidence (Part 2)”

Body of Evidence (Part 1)

Recreating a lost masterpiece.

It’s a dilemma that faces many car restorers. Does one strive for total originality throughout, or carry out a few subtle modifications. Many fudge the issue, adding a set of disc brakes here, or an alternator there – nothing that cannot be reversed or sneered at too loudly by the faithful. Others choose to Continue reading “Body of Evidence (Part 1)”

Theme : Romance – Veyron The Road To Nowhere

Ferdinand Piech’s Ultimate Car should have been the definitive offering in our romance with the automobile. Why wasn’t it?

A fair amount of my not-so-uber income comes from working, directly or indirectly, for people with lots of money, so I’m vaguely qualified to comment on this. I have discovered something quite amazing. The very rich are much the same as the rest of us – but richer. Some are discerning, some are not. So the fact that people actually bought Bugatti Veyrons at an average rate of almost one a week over its 10 year life doesn’t really give the vehicles more or less credibility in my eyes. Continue reading “Theme : Romance – Veyron The Road To Nowhere”