Imagine cruising the coastal roads of the Riviera in this little Bugatti. Someone at Amelia got that chance, after spending $500-600k. It’s immaculate!
Continue reading 1925 Bugatti Type 30 Tourer at Amelia Island
Tag Archives: Bugatti
The Magnificent Bugatti Type 57 Aerolithe at Amelia Island
I’m sure many of you know about the most expensive car on Earth (arguably), the 1936 Bugatti Type 57 SC Atlantic Coupe. Well, this Bugatti Type 57 Aerolithe was the show car that inspired the Atlantic’s design. At the 1935 Paris Auto Salon, the Aerolithe was had a striking and divisive effect on the crowd. It was unlike any car ever seen before because of its swooping coupe shape and also because its body was made entirely of electron magnesium, a metal nearly impossible to work with. It was aptly dubbed the “Electron Coupe.”
Despite initial mixed opinions in Paris, the Bugatti Aerolithe went on to inspire many other French car designs to come during the Art Deco era, including the famed Type 57 SC Atlantic. Interestingly, though, the Aerolithe vanished shortly after the Paris show, and has never been seen again.
Continue reading The Magnificent Bugatti Type 57 Aerolithe at Amelia Island
New York International Auto Show General Gallery
The New York Auto Show finished its run on Sunday evening and was home to a multitude of concept and full debuts, including Lincoln’s Navigator concept (complete with a massive gullwing door) and Mazda’s MX-5 Targa Retractable. This year, the show wasn’t nearly as glitzy as previous years, but I had an enjoyable day all the same. Although I wasn’t intent on taking as many photos (as I had spent a massive amount of time at L.A. a few months back), there was still plenty to see. Fiat showed off the new 124 Abarth, and Porsche had the 911R on display for all to see, just ahead of the new 718 Boxster roadster. Enjoy the brief gallery of what was on display this past week, with some more to follow. Continue reading New York International Auto Show General Gallery
2016 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance Gallery 1
Here is our first round of highlights from the 2016 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. There were so many incredible cars, of various eras, present that it’ll take a few of these galleries and numerous individual features to cover them all.
Racing legend, Hans-Joachim Stuck (pictured above), was the guest of honor. He rolled up during the award ceremony at the wheel of the Porsche 962 in which he won the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It was epic!
Best in show awards went to a 1930 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Town Car with some fancy coachwork (see below), and also to a 1952 Pegaso Z-102 Cupula Coupe, which was my personal favorite car at the show, as well. The Pegaso had a unique color scheme of bright yellow with red-wall tires and a pea green interior, and it’s striking curves and crafted details definitely made it the sight to be seen.
Enjoy this first highlight reel, and stay tuned for much more to come!
Continue reading 2016 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance Gallery 1
An Honest Take on the Bugatti Chiron
The Bugatti Veyron hit the world of supercars over the head with a hammer. In a world where 600hp was still hypercar territory, the Veyron came in with 1,000hp. It was the first road car to crack the 250mph barrier, it was the most expensive car on sale, it had the most radiators… essentially it was the Guiness Book of World Records on four wheels.
Bugatti just released their next-generation hypercar, the Chiron, at the Geneva Motor Show this week, and it’s the exact same recipie as the Veyron. I mean, sure it has 500 more horsepower than the original Veyron had, and sure it looks a little fancier, but it’s really just more of the same ingredients. It’s the same type of car, but is that a good thing, or a bad thing?
Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse Blue Carbon at the Quail Lodge
No matter what you may think of the Bugatti Veyron, there is no denying the hefty presence it has when you see one in person. It’s not a particularly big car, and it doesn’t have the flashiest exotic shape either. The Veyron is very round, some might even say bulbous, but it has an essence of sheer quality that will make almost any car near it seem shamefully cheap.
I recently heard somewhere that these Super Sport model Bugattis cost Volkswagen a whopping $6 million each to produce. That means VW lost $2-4 million on each Veyron they sold. Most cars are a lot cheaper in build than their price tag would suggest, especially in the luxury arena. Not the Bugatti Veryron, though, and it really does show when you see the car up close in the real world.
I know I’ve been one to criticize the Veyron from time to time, but that’s mostly for people reasons, not because of the car itself. Sociologically, the braggadocios Veyron got played out pretty quick, and Bugatti even struggled to move the last few units. But there’s no denying what a significant technological achievement this car is, even despite the existence of the LaFerrari, Koenigsegg and the other, newer hypercars.
Sure, there are quicker cars out there. But the Veyron doesn’t just do 250 or 260 mph, it makes it an easy affair. I often joke that the Bugatti’s real achievement wasn’t in breaking the 250 mph barrier, but in that it would allow Paris Hilton to do it in heels while texting, petting her toy dog and taking a selfie. That is a massive engineering achievement, and if you tried the same in a Hennessey Venom GT…. well, you’d probably wind up losing your phone.
What a fantastic objects these later-production Veyrons are, when Bugatti started getting fancy with the color schemes. This Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, which we found at the Quail Lodge during Monterey Car Week, just looked unreal with it’s two-tone French Racing Blue and blue carbon fiber bodywork. If I were spec’ing up a Bugatti Veyron for myself, this would surely be the epitome of my desire.
Enjoy the photos of this serious stunner!
Continue reading Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse Blue Carbon at the Quail Lodge
Best Of Show Winners from the 2015 Concours of America at St. John’s
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Six months back, Nick, Shane, and I were all in attendance at the 2015 Concours of America, over in Plymouth MI. Â Nick’s shown us all the highlights and I’ve done a few features on one or two muscle cars and a set of dry-lake race cars, as well as a very unique Corvette. Â However, nothing gets in front of Best of Show, and at this show, one award is given to the best American car, and one is given to the best imported car. Â The winners this year genuinely embody the best of what the pre-war world of cars had to offer 80 years ago. Continue reading Best Of Show Winners from the 2015 Concours of America at St. John’s
Various Racing Machines in the Laguna Seca Paddock
Some more shots from the Paddock of Laguna Seca during Monterey Car Week, here is a gallery of awesome racing cars, old and new.
I always love seeing the old pre-war racecars sitting right next to more modern racecars, like Group C, because it really puts in perspective how far the automobile has come in just a few decades. That said, the drivers of those older racing cars were men among men. Those cars were not especially slow at all, reaching over 100mph, but with very primitive technology.
Enjoy the spectacle!
Continue reading Various Racing Machines in the Laguna Seca Paddock
1936 Bugatti Type 57 Ventoux at the Concours of America
A beautiful example of 1930’s era French car design, this Bugatti Type 57 Ventoux turned many a head at the 10 Concours of America. Another Bugatti, a much rarer Type 57 SC Atlante won best in show, but it was all black and much less fun to look at than this wild yellow and black Bug (I know, cars snobs are rolling their eyes right now). In fact, the Bugatti Atlante that won used to be a 2-tone yellow, which was 100x cooler than the all-black it is now…. sometimes there is a good reason that a car does not have the original paint job.
Either way, this Type 57 Ventoux was my favorite Bugatti at the show. It was very “Cruella DeVille.”
Enjoy the pics!
Continue reading 1936 Bugatti Type 57 Ventoux at the Concours of America
Highlights From the 2015 Greenwich Concours Day 2
On Day 2 of this year’s Greenwich Concours d’Elegance we were blessed with a sudden downpour that made everyone run for cover. However, it also covered all of the immaculate cars in some beautiful water droplets, making for some wonderful photos. Rain and clouds also really make the colors “pop”, so I actually prefer it to direct sunlight for shooting cars. I’d imagine that the gentleman in the silver Porsche RSK Spyder (below) might disagree, though.
There were some truly beautiful cars displayed on Day 2, including that bright yellow/green Lamborghini Miura you see above – we saw him driving around on the streets of Greenwich before the show, and promptly lost bowel control. Thankfully we all had a change of pants in the car.
I should also point out that the green Ferrari Daytona Spider (seen below) is the only one ever made in that color, so one of the rarest examples of an already rare car. The Pagani Huayra was also said to be “one of one”, but every Pagani is built custom to order, so every other Huayra is equally “one of one” – people just love to toot their own horn, I guess, but an incredible car for either way. (My Subaru is “one of one” too, if you count it’s unique stone chips)
I thought last year’s Greenwich Concours was the best in recent memory, but this one just may have topped it. There’s more to come from the event, but enjoy looking through our highlight gallery of Day 2!
Continue reading Highlights From the 2015 Greenwich Concours Day 2
Awesome Burnouts and Accelerations at the CF Charities Supercar Show!
Here is some fun stuff from the CF Charities Supercar Show last year. Naturally, when you hold a car meet on an open airstrip, some shenanigans are going to take place… in fact, the more, the better!
It was a motley crew of cars at the show, everything from everyday tuner cars to a mighty Bugatti Veyron and a straight-piped Porsche Carrera GT.
If you love hearing some engines being thrashed, and you love some tire smoke, then you’ll be glad you gave this video a watch!
-Nick Walker
1938 Bugatti Type 57 Stelivio at Bonhams Auction
While perusing through the field at the Bonhams Auction at the Quail Lodge, we were stopped in our tracks by this incredible 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Stelvio. Red and Black is one of my personal favorite color combinations on a car. That mixed with the swooping Art Deco lines of this vintage Bugatti made it just perfect.
This Type 57 was actually pretty powerful back in its day, with a 170hp supercharged inline-8 engine. If a Bugatti represents the utmost in luxury automobiles today, it was surely just as true back in the pre war era.
This stunning Type 57 Stelvio was coach built by Carrosserie Gangloff of Colmar, France. And what a magnificent job they did with it!
This Bugatti is exactly the sort of thing I look for in an Art Deco era luxury car. It has all of that swoopy style you could want, and it had some high technology and performance for its time. You can get more info on this car here.
Enjoy the photos of this immaculate machine!
-Nick Walker
Mind Over Motor 