Bugatti Prototypes

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This is a list of prototype vehicles created by Bugatti that never reached full production.

Bugatti Defunct French automaker

Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a French car manufacturer of high-performance automobiles, founded in 1909 in the then-German city of Molsheim, Alsace by the Italian-born industrial designer Ettore Bugatti. The cars were known for their design beauty and for their many race victories. Famous Bugattis include the Type 35 Grand Prix cars, the Type 41 "Royale", the Type 57 "Atlantic" and the Type 55 sports car.

Contents

Type 36

The Type 36 racer, produced in 1925, introduced a new 1.5 L (1493 cc/91 in³) straight-8 engine. With a 60 by 66 mm bore and stroke, the engine later found a place in the Type 39A, though the Type 36 project was more of an experiment. At first, the rear axle was bolted directly to the frame with no springs. In 1926, Bugatti added both springs and a supercharger to the Type 36. This was the experimental base for the Type 35C.

Type 45

Type 47 Bugatti old engine.JPG
Type 47

The 16-cylinder Type 45 racing car and similar Type 47 "Grand Sport" were to become a new generation of cars from Bugatti. The engine, a 3-valve SOHC design, was based on the 3-valve straight-8 from the Type 35. Two versions were made: A 3.0 L (2986 cc/182 in³) version fitted to a Type 47 prototype shared the Type 36's 60 by 66 mm dimensions, while the Type 45 prototype used a unique 84 mm stroke for 3.8 L (3801 cc/231 in³). Output would have been 200 to 250 hp (149 to 186 kW) with a Roots-type supercharger in play.

Bugatti Type 35 car model

The Type 35 was the most successful of the Bugatti racing models. Its version of the Bugatti arch-shaped radiator that had evolved from the more architectural one of the Bugatti Type 13 Brescia, was to become the one that the marque is most known for though even in the ranks of the various Type 35s there were variations on the theme.

Supercharger air compressor for an internal combustion engine

A supercharger is an air compressor that increases the pressure or density of air supplied to an internal combustion engine. This gives each intake cycle of the engine more oxygen, letting it burn more fuel and do more work, thus increasing power.

The entire vehicle was unique, including its chassis. The Type 45 used a 102.2 in (2596 mm) wheelbase, while the Type 47 was stretched to 108.3 in (2750 mm). Both had a 49.2 in (1250 mm) track.

Type 56

The Type 56 was an electric vehicle. The number built is controversial; six seems the most likely answer.

Electric vehicle vehicle propelled by one or more electric motors

An electric vehicle, also called an EV, uses one or more electric motors or traction motors for propulsion. An electric vehicle may be powered through a collector system by electricity from off-vehicle sources, or may be self-contained with a battery, solar panels or an electric generator to convert fuel to electricity. EVs include, but are not limited to, road and rail vehicles, surface and underwater vessels, electric aircraft and electric spacecraft.

The Bugatti 56 was originally designed for private use by Ettore Bugatti as a factory runabout, but due to popular demand from previous customers convinced him to build some extra types 56. [1]

Ettore Bugatti Italian automobile designer and manufacturer

Ettore Arco Isidoro Bugatti was an Italian-born French automobile designer and manufacturer. He is remembered as the founder and proprietor of the automobile manufacturing company Automobiles E. Bugatti.

The Type 56 was a tiny 2-seat open car very much in the style of turn-of-the-century horseless carriages or voiturettes. Power came from a single 28 amp electric motor producing 1 hp (0.8 kW). Energy was stored in six 6 volt accumulators in series for a total of 36 volts. The motor was mounted directly to the frame and drove the rear wheels through gears. Electric braking was allowed, and both hand- and foot-brakes operated on rear wheel drums. Four forward speeds were available, and the vehicle could accelerate to 28 km/h (17.4 mph). Steering was by tiller.

Voiturette

A voiturette is a miniature automobile.

Ettore Bugatti's personal 56 is part of the collection at the Musée National de l'Automobile de Mulhouse.

Type 64

The Bugatti Type 64 was an Atlantic-style coupe produced in 1939 with gull-wing doors, designed by Jean Bugatti. It was fitted with a 4.4 L (4432 cc/270 in³) 2-valve DOHC straight-8 engine and rode on a 130 in (3300 mm) wheelbase. Three cars were started, but only one body was finished, although the car was not completed. [2] [3] [4] [5]

Type 73C

Begun in 1943 and completed in 1947 after the war, the Type 73C was to be a comeback for Bugatti. But the death of Ettore Bugatti in August of that year doomed the project. An engine-less Type 73 was shown at the 1947 Paris Motor Show two months later. Although five 73C chassis had been constructed in Paris, Only one body was completed for these cars and at least three engines and one complete car were assembled and tested by the factory. Serge Pozzoli stated that he visited the Bugatti factory at Rue Debarcadere in Paris where he saw a demonstration car which was fitted with a scaled down body similar to the pre-war Type 50BIII (Cork Car). All the cars were dismantled and taken to Molsheim after Ettore Bugatti's death.

The Type 73C used a new 1.5 L (1488 cc/90 in³) straight-4 engine with 4 valves per cylinder and a twin overhead camshaft. This was a new design with a 76 mm bore and 95 mm stroke, wet cylinder liners, a detachable cylinder head, and a single cast iron exhaust manifold. Much to the chagrin of Bugatti purists, the Type 73 used off-the-shelf hex fasteners rather than the custom-designed parts used in all previous cars.

The five Type 73C chassis were sold off after the company exited automobile production. Most were later assembled, and one (number 2) was even given a body based on the original Bugatti drawings.

There are several prototype Type 73 Bugatti models.

Type 73: Touring two- or four-seater; four-cylinder, twin overhead camshaft, four valves per cylinder

Type 73A: Touring two- or four-seater four-cylinder Single overhead camshaft with three valves per cylinder.

Type 73C: Grand Prix single seater: The engine fitted to this car is similar to the Type 73

Type 73B: touring two- or four-seater: Similar engine to the Type 73 but with single overhead camshaft.

Type 251

Bugatti Type 251 Bugatti GP Type 251.jpg
Bugatti Type 251

The final resurgence of the original Bugatti was the Type 251, completed in 1955. Designed by Gioacchino Colombo of Ferrari fame, it was powered by a new 2.5 L (2486 cc/151 in³) straight-8. Uniquely, this engine was mounted transversely, behind the driver. For the first time in a Bugatti, an oversquare engine was used with a 76 mm bore and 68.5 mm stroke. A de Dion tube rear suspension was also a novelty for the company, though it was in vogue at the time. The Type 251 was entered in the 1956 French Grand Prix, driven by Maurice Trintignant, [6] but was not competitive and retired after 18 laps.

Related Research Articles

Straight-eight engine Inline piston engine with eight cylinders

The straight-eight engine or inline-eight engine is an eight-cylinder internal combustion engine with all eight cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase. The type has been produced in side-valve, IOE, overhead-valve, sleeve-valve, and overhead-cam configurations.

Ferrari Colombo engine

The Ferrari Colombo Engine was a petrol fueled, water cooled, carburetted 60° V12 engine designed by Gioacchino Colombo and produced in numerous iterations by Italian automaker Ferrari between 1947 and 1988.

BMC B-series engine

The BMC B series was a line of straight-4 internal combustion engine mostly used in motor cars, created by British company Austin Motor Company.

Bugatti 8-cylinder line line of cars from Bugatti, Types 30 to 49

The early Bugatti 8-cylinder line began with the 1922 Type 30. The same basic design was used for the 1926 Type 38 as well as the Type 40, Type 43, Type 44, and Type 49.

Bugatti Type 57 car

The Bugatti Type 57 and later variants was an entirely new design created by Jean Bugatti, son of founder Ettore. Type 57s were built from 1934 through 1940, with a total of 710 examples produced.

Bugatti Type 13 the first real Bugatti car

The Type 13 was the first true Bugatti car. Production of the Type 13 and later Types 15, 17, 22, and 23, began with the company's founding in 1910 and lasted through 1920 with 435 examples produced. Most road cars used an eight-valve engine, though five Type 13 racers had 16-valve heads, some of the first ever produced. The road cars became known as pur-sang ("thoroughbred") in keeping with Ettore Bugatti's feelings for his designs.

Bugatti Type 18

The Bugatti Type 18, also called the Garros, is an automobile produced from 1912 through 1914. Produced shortly after the start of the business, the design was something of a relic. It had much in common with the cars Ettore Bugatti had designed for Deutz Gasmotoren Fabrik but with the radiator of the Type 13. Only 6 or 7 examples were built.

Bugatti Royale large luxury car

The Bugatti Type 41, better known as the Royale, is a large luxury car built from 1927 to 1933 with a 4.3 m (169.3 in) wheelbase and 6.4 m (21 ft) overall length. It weighs approximately 3,175 kg (7,000 lb) and uses a 12.763 litre (778 cu in) straight-eight engine. For comparison, against the modern Rolls-Royce Phantom, the Royale is about 20% longer, and more than 25% heavier. This makes the Royale one of the largest cars in the world.

Bugatti Type 46

The Bugatti Type 46 and later Type 50 were large enclosed touring cars and along with the Type 50B racing version, were all produced in the 1930s. Their relative ubiquity and numbers, combined with their styling caused them to sometimes receive the appellation of being a Molsheim Buick.

BMC E-series engine

The BMC E-series engine was a line of straight-4 and straight-6 overhead camshaft automobile petrol engines from the British Motor Corporation (BMC). It displaced 1.5 L or 1.8 L in four-cylinder form, and 2.2 L or 2.6 L as a six-cylinder. The company's native United Kingdom market did not use the 2.6 L version, which was used in vehicles of Australian and South African manufacture. Although designed when the parent company was BMC, by the time the engine was launched the company had become British Leyland (BL), and so the engine is commonly referred to as the British Leyland E-series engine.

Bentley 3 Litre

The Bentley 3 Litre was a car chassis manufactured by Bentley. The company's first it was developed from 1919 and made available to customers' coachbuilders from 1921 to 1929. The Bentley was very much larger than the 1368 cc Bugattis that dominated racing at the time, but double the size of engine and strength compensated for the extra weight. The 4000 lb (1800 kg) car won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924, with drivers John Duff and Frank Clement, and again in 1927, this time in Super Sports form, with drivers S. C. H. "Sammy" Davis and Dudley Benjafield. Its weight, size, and speed prompted Ettore Bugatti to call it "the fastest lorry in the world."

MG F-type

The MG F-type Magna is a six-cylinder-engined car that was produced by MG from October 1931 to 1932. It was also known as the 12/70.

Maserati A6 car model

Maserati A6 were a series of grand tourers, racing sports cars and single seaters made by Maserati of Italy between 1947 and 1956. They were named for Alfieri Maserati and for their straight-six engine.

MG L-type

The MG L-type is a sports car that was produced by the MG Car company in 1933 and 1934.

MG N-type

The MG N-type Magnette is a sports car that was produced by MG from October 1934 to 1936. The car was developed from the K-Type and L-Type but had a new chassis that broke away in design from the simple ladder type used on the earlier cars of the 1930s being wider at the rear than the front and with the body fitted to outriggers off the main frame.

ALFA 40/60 HP car model

The ALFA 40/60 HP is a road car and race car made by Italian car manufacturer ALFA. This model was made between 1913 and 1922 and was designed by Giuseppe Merosi, as were all other Alfas at that time. The 40/60 HP has a 6082 cc straight-4 engine with overhead valves, which produced 70 bhp (52 kW) and its top speed was 125 km/h (78 mph). The race model 40-60 HP Corsa had 73 bhp (54 kW) and a top speed of 137 km/h (85 mph), and it also won its own category in the Parma-Berceto race.

Wolseley Hornet six lightweight saloon car

The Wolseley Hornet is a six-cylinder twelve fiscal horsepower lightweight automobile which was offered as a saloon car, coupé and open two-seater as well as the usual rolling chassis for bespoke coachwork. Produced by Wolseley Motors Limited from 1930 to 1936, the Hornet was unveiled to the public at the end of April 1930. Wolseley had been bought from the receivers by William Morris in 1927.

Mercedes-Benz M180 engine

The Mercedes Benz M180 Engine was a 2.2 L; 134.0 cu in (2,196 cc) single overhead camshaft inline-6 cylinder engine introduced at the Frankfurt Motor Show in April 1951 to power the company's new 220 (W187). It was the first engine with a cylinder bore greater than its stroke that Mercedes had installed in a production car.

References

  1. "Type 56 (Electric Vehicle)". bugatti.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-28. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
  2. "1939 Bugatti Type 64 Coupe is incomplete perfection"
  3. "Mullin Automotive Museum To Unveil 1939 Bugatti Type 64 Coupe At The Quail"
  4. "Mullin Completes 1939 Bugatti Type 64 "
  5. "70-year-old Bugatti Type 64 chassis gets a body, the old-fashioned way"
  6. "Grand Prix Racing - the whole story". Archived from the original on 2006-11-25. Retrieved 2006-12-13.