BECAUSE KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

From greatest hits to lowest moments, everything you ever wanted to know... and a fair bit you didn’t

WORDS SAM BURNETT, CRAIG JAMIESON, GREG POTTS

IMAGES: MANUFACTURER

What is Bugatti and when did it start making cars?

Bugatti was founded by Italian-born Ettore Bugatti in 1909 in Molsheim, Alsace. Not much space here to get into the intricacies of 20th century European politics, but it was in Germany when it started, then France, then Germany and now sits in France.

Bugatti became known for its sleek tourers and roadsters, as well as its elegant racing cars. A privateer Bugatti won the first ever Monaco

GP in 1929 and the firm’s works team won at Le Mans in 1937 and 1939. Bugatti’s test driver son Jean died in 1939 testing a Type 57 racecar, and with the onset of World War Two the company never really recovered.

Ettore’s youngest son Roland tried to revive Bugatti’s fortunes after his dad’s death in 1947. The Type 101 of 1951 is widely seen as the last true Bugatti. Spanish outfit Hispano-Suiza owned the rights to the Bugatti name from 1963 to 1986, using it to sell plane bits.

Italian entrepreneur Romano Artioli managed a reasonable comeback with the EB110 supercar of the early Nineties. The new firm went under too, though, and VW snapped up the brand rights in 1998. Bugatti has grabbed headlines since then, but never made much money. They’ll be hoping 2021’s merger with Rimac changes that.

Bugatti’s greatest hits

01 Bugatti Veyron

After Volkswagen acquired the Bugatti brand in the late Nineties, it felt the need to make a statement. So, what better way to do it than with the hypercar to end (or perhaps should that be to begin) all hypercars? The Veyron’s 8.0-litre quad-turbo W16 started an all-out power war.

02 Bugatti Type 35

Built between 1924 and 1931, the iconic Type 35 is widely cited as the most successful racing car of all time. And not even Red Bull’s current dominant F1 car will surpass its reputation, because the Bugatti racked up over 1,000 wins in its various forms.

03 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+

After taking a modified, longtailed Chiron to 304.77mph at Ehra-Lessien in 2019, Bugatti decided to commemorate the car’s success by selling 30 production versions of the exposed carbon Super Sport 300+, complete with a bonkers 1,578bhp.