Ettore Arco Isadore Bugatti was born in 1881, the son of Milanese artists and was to become one of the world's greatest  and most innovative car manufacturers. Against family tradition he left art school at 17 to work in a bicycle factory: Prinetti and Stucchi in Milan. It was here that he built an early Bugatti prototype, a motorised tricycle.

  Ettore's first motor car was exhibited at the 1901 Milan motor show and was awarded the 'Grand Prix' by the French automobile clubs. Built by De Dietrich and bearing the De Dietrich-Bugatti brand name the car went into production in Germany and Ettore Bugatti moved to the Alsace.
After working for Mathis in 1905 and designing the Mathis type Hermes, Ettore Bugatti took him as a partner and formed his own company.
With five employees he brought out his first car in 1906, manufactured by Gasmotoren Fabrik Deutz in Cologne, it had a 4 cylinder engine
with overhead camshaft, a chain drive to the rear wheels, four gears and 50/60 hp.

In 1909, to produce the first 'Pur Sang' or thoroughbred Bugatti, Ettore opened his own factory in Molsheim. He built five cars the following year and in 1911 Ettore Bugatti's cars began winning races. Up until the Great War in 1914 his cars developed from Type 15 to Type 20 all bearing the Bugatti hallmarks: Type 19 had a 5 liter, 4 cylinder engine, 90/100 hp and a top speed of 150 km/h at 2,800 RPM.
During the war Bugatti worked on aeroplane engines.

After World War 1 Ettore Bugatti returned to his factory in Molsheim and his true role in life, making racing cars; producing Bugattis Type 22 and 23 'Pur Sang'. To finance his factory in the post war years, Bugatti sold licenses for his cars to other manufacturers: Dialto in Italy, Crossley in Great Britain and Rabag in Germany.

The famous Bugatti Type 35 was based on the earlier Type 30, an unusual cigar shaped car which gained honours in many races but broke down in the relentless Indianapolis 500.
In 1923 Ettore Bugatti entered four cars in the French Grand Prix whose body shapes were based on an aeroplane wing, people quickly nicknamed the cars the Bugatti Tanks.

The Type 35, designed and produced in 1923/24 stands as a testament to Bugatti engineering. One of the most beautiful cars ever made it was also one of the most successful, winning over 2000 races.
Type 37 with a 1.5 liter engine was a typical hill climber and another winner from the Bugatti stable.
The best performances in Grand Prix racing for Ettore Bugatti's cars came with the advent of Type 51, an unfussy  car and extremely rugged with a massive 5 liter engine under the bonnet.

Adjacent to the Bugatti factory was a small inn and guest house, called naturally the 'Pur Sang' where wealthy clients stayed when visiting Molsheim to pick up their cars; the guest list read like a Who's Who of the World's royalty.
Throughout the world everyone had heard of and wanted a Bugatti. But Ettore Bugatti was a purist and didn't think like an industrial tycoon and would not sell his cars to just anyone; when King Zog of Albania wanted to buy one, Ettore didn't allow it. As Bugatti put it," The man's table manners are beyond belief".

In 1932, Type 53 was a four wheel drive racing car, a complete innovation; it sported independent front wheel suspension and the 4.9 liter, Type 50 engine, the 300 hp it produced was transmitted over three differentials. Two cars were manufactured and they were only used in tough hill climbs.
With an engine capacity of 4.9 liters, Type 54 didn't perform as well as it may have done, six cars were built between 1931 and 1934 and they lacked the competitive edge.
Likewise the Type 59 fell short of Bugatti's expectations.

Jean Bugatti, Ettore's son, took an active part in his fathers business and loved motor racing. Although he was not allowed to compete, on account of his reckless driving, Jean could be found at most racing events giving the drivers instructions. Unfortunately he was killed in an accident whilst testing the Type 59.

Ettore Bugatti died in 1947, aged 66. After his death the Bugatti works continued to build excellent cars but they missed the genius of their creator. The last racing car, Type 251, designed by the famous Alfa and Ferrari designer Giachino Colombo, was produced between 1955 and 1956. The Type 251 project was disabled by financial difficulties and the Bugatti factories in Molsheim had to close their doors forever on their glorious past.
Ettore Bugatti left the world a heritage of automotive design, innovation and excitement never before matched by any car manufacturer.

Technical specifications

Production volume 200 cars

Production volume 300 cars

Production volume 40 cars

Early pilots for Bugatti were :
Meo Costantini, Count Czaykowski, Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Robert Benoist, Charles Grover ‘Williams’, Freddy Zehender, Philippe Etancelin and Louis Chiron.
In 1933 Meo Costantini was team manager and René Dreyfus joined the team then consisting of Robert Benoist, Marcel Lehoux, Philippe Etancelin, Willie Williams, Albert Divo and Achille Varzi.
In 1934 the great Tazio Nuvolari joined, while also Tonino Brivio and Jean Pierre Wimille were added to the Bugatti team.
Chiron won Monaco in 31 and Varzi the GP of Tunis and the GP of France, 2nd and 3rd place in GP of Germany and winner of GP of Tchechoslovakia. Then Varzi in 33 in Monaco, Lehoux in Monza and 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in GP of Dieppe.

Bugatti Typ 35 8 cylinder engine and Typ 35 pedal set-up