Bugatti: From Ettore's Molsheim Workshop to the Tourbillon

Bugatti at a glance

Ettore Bugatti and the founding of the company

Ettore Bugatti came from an artistic Milan family; his father, Carlo, designed Art Nouveau furniture and jewellery. In 1909 Ettore set up Automobiles Ettore Bugatti in Molsheim, a small town west of Strasbourg. Alsace was then German territory, and it became French again after the First World War. His life is told on the Ettore Bugatti page.

The first production model was the light Type 13, built around a small four-cylinder engine with an overhead camshaft. The old 1cars text credits the early success to Ettore's care over the smallest details of design and construction. In October 1919, at the 15th Paris Motor Show, the firm showed three light cars with 1,368 cc four-cylinder engines. The old 1cars text noted a similar point: soon after the war ended, the firm was already showing new cars, partly built from pre-war parts.

Bugatti history by era

1909–1939: racing cars and grand tourers

The Type 35 made its debut at the 1924 French Grand Prix in Lyon. Poorly vulcanised tyres spoiled that first race, but the car went on to win a huge number of events. Its 1,991 cc straight-eight produced up to 67 kW (90 hp), and supercharged versions reached about 103 kW (138 hp).

The Type 41 Royale of 1927–1933 went the other way. It had a 12.8-litre straight-eight and a wheelbase of about 4.3 m. Ettore planned 25, but only six were built after a prototype, and just three were sold to customers. The 23 unused engines later powered Bugatti railcars for the French railways.

Ettore's son Jean led design in the 1930s. His Type 57 of 1934 became the main road car, and the 57SC Atlantic coupé became its most famous body. Only four Atlantics were made, and three survive. On 11 August 1939, Jean Bugatti died while testing a Type 57 race car near the Molsheim factory.

1939–1963: war, Ettore's death and the end of production

The Second World War left the Molsheim factory in ruins, and the family lost control of the site for several years. Ettore planned a new factory at Levallois, near Paris, but only five Type 73 cars were built after the war. He died on 21 August 1947. The Type 101 of 1951–1956 was a reworked pre-war design, and the mid-engined Type 251 racer of 1955–1956 never reached production. The original company built its last cars in the early 1950s. In 1963 the business, by then mainly an aircraft-parts maker, was sold to Hispano-Suiza.

1987–1995: Romano Artioli and the EB110

Italian businessman Romano Artioli bought the brand in 1987 and founded Bugatti Automobili S.p.A. A new factory at Campogalliano, near Modena, opened in 1990. The Bugatti EB110 followed in September 1991, with a 3.5-litre quad-turbo V12, a carbon-fibre chassis and four-wheel drive. Artioli also bought Lotus in August 1993. The early-1990s recession hit hard, and operations stopped in September 1995 after about 139 EB110s.

1998–2021: Volkswagen and the W16 era

Volkswagen Group bought the name in 1998, pushed by its chairman Ferdinand Piëch. A run of concept cars followed: the EB 118 coupé at Paris in 1998, the EB 218 saloon at Geneva and the 18/3 Chiron at Frankfurt in 1999. The final design came from the 1999 EB 18/4 Veyron concept. Volkswagen set up Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. and restored Château Saint-Jean, once Ettore's guest house, as its headquarters.

A new workshop next to the château opened on 3 September 2005, and Bugatti Veyron assembly began that month. The car had an 8.0-litre W16 with four turbochargers and 736 kW (1,001 PS). The old 1cars text recalls the 16C Galibier saloon concept of 2009, which the firm later dropped to focus on the Veyron. The last of 450 Veyrons was sold on 23 February 2015, and the Chiron was revealed at Geneva in 2016.

2021 to today: Bugatti Rimac and the Tourbillon

In November 2021 the brand became part of Bugatti Rimac, a joint venture led by the Croatian electric-car founder Mate Rimac. Rimac Group holds 55 % and Porsche 45 %. The last W16 cars were the open Mistral, shown in August 2022, and the track-only Bolide. On 20 June 2024 the company revealed the Tourbillon, with a naturally aspirated V16 built by Cosworth and three electric motors. Compared with the 736 kW Veyron of 2005, it has 80 % more power by our calculation.

Landmark cars that defined the brand

The Type 35 figure is our sum of the variant totals: 96 original cars, 139 Type 35A, 13 Type 35T, about 45 Type 35C and about 37 Type 35B. From the Type 35 to the Tourbillon, peak power grew roughly twentyfold by our calculation. The modern hypercars sit among the strongest supercars in the 1cars catalogue and near the top of the 1cars power rankings.

Motorsport wins, speed records and engineering firsts

Racing built the brand. Its cars won the Targa Florio five times in a row, from 1925 to 1929. In 1926 the marque took the Grand Prix World Championship. William Grover-Williams won the first Monaco Grand Prix in 1929 in a Type 35B. Le Mans followed in 1937 with Jean-Pierre Wimille and Robert Benoist, and again in 1939 with Wimille and Pierre Veyron.

How many races the Type 35 won depends on the count. Wikipedia credits it with more than 1,000 victories, while Bugatti histories and the old 1cars text say more than 2,000. Either way, it remains one of the most successful racing cars of its era.

The modern company chased top speed instead. A Veyron reached 408.47 km/h in April 2005. The Veyron Super Sport set a production-car record of 431.072 km/h on 26 June 2010, and the Grand Sport Vitesse reached 408.84 km/h as a roadster in April 2013. In 2017 a Chiron went from 0 to 400 km/h and back to rest in 42 seconds. In 2019 a modified Chiron reached 490.484 km/h, the first car past 300 mph.

Owners, factories and production today

Every modern car is assembled by hand in the Molsheim Atelier, a small building next to Château Saint-Jean. The company delivered 77 cars in 2020 and reported revenue of 319.5 million EUR in 2021.

The current line-up

The Tourbillon is the current model, with 250 cars planned. It replaces the Bugatti Chiron, which was limited to 500 cars. The last W16 cars were the Mistral roadster and the Bolide track car. One-off and small-series cars such as the Divo (40 cars), the Centodieci (10) and La Voiture Noire (1) show how Bugatti now works: very small runs for known customers. All Bugatti models with their data are listed in the Bugatti catalogue.

The company in numbers

By our calculation, the original company averaged about 190 cars a year over its four decades of car production, while the modern firm sold about 45 a year from 2005 to 2020. The Veyron alone works out at 45 cars a year over ten years. To set one Bugatti against a rival, use the 1cars comparison tool.

Which Bugatti to choose: our view for collectors

For most enthusiasts, the realistic way into the pre-war story is a Type 57: about 710 were built between 1934 and 1940, far more than any other large Bugatti. A Type 35 suits buyers who want to race in historic events, and a documented chassis history matters most there. The Royale and the Atlantic are museum pieces rather than buys.

Among modern cars, the Veyron is the most available, with 450 made. The EB110, at about 139 cars, is the rarer choice and suits collectors of 1990s supercars. A Chiron is faster and newer. Whatever the model, buy one only with a full service history and a checked chassis record.