Antique Bugatti automobiles, with only 8,000 ever manufactured, today number around 2,000. Most of these exquisite handcrafted works of art still are in excellent working condition. Antique Bugatti cars can legitimately be referred to as works of art because most were created directly under the supervision of founder, Ettore Bugatti (1881 - 1947).
Ettore, himself trained in Art School, was son of famed furniture creator and sculptor, Carlo Bugatti (1856 – 1940). Carlo in turn was son of Giovanni Luigi Bugatti, architect and sculptor. Early on, Ettore was fascinated by the newly-invented automobile.
Ettore Bugatti began work in Milan bicycle manufacturer Prinetti and Stucchi at the tender age of seventeen. Very soon, he personally developed a motorized tricycle using dual DeDion motors. Before long, Ettore was racing his creations.
Bugatti's penchant for auto racing kept his focus on that type of automobile invention to the exclusion of series production models of wider appeal. Ettore Bugatti held several postions before starting his own company in 1909 in Molsheim in the Alsace region of Germany. His initial financing allowed him to produce ten cars as well as aircraft engines.
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During World War I, Bugatti was able to hide 3 of his designs beneath his basement and recover them after the war's end. Bugatti race cars were always fast and innovative. They won many prizes in the early days of auto racing.
Another World War, the death of his son, Jean, and the 1947 passing of Ettore himself, led to a gradual decline in the original Bugatti company, which was broken up by 1963. Present day, the Bugatti name is attached to limited edition Bugatti sports cars made by Volkswagen.
In May of 2008, a 1928 Type 35B Bugatti racing car fetched the highest price ever for an automobile. It raced the first Monaco Grand Prix and is still equipped with its original components!
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