This hornet colored Bugatti Type 55 was tucked off in a corner of the show at Radnor Hunt, but it still caught everyone’s eye. With a magnificent paint job and a fine wood interior this is French roadster is as classic as they come. Just imagine cruising the Riviera in this thing…
Continue reading 1932 Bugatti Type 55 Roadster at Radnor Hunt
This is the first Pur Sang Bugatti I’ve ever seen out in the world. It’s crazy because it looks pre-war correct in every way, except all the materials are brand new. It doesn’t have the patina of a car nearly a century old, and that’s what gives it away.
For those unfamiliar with Pur Sangs, they aren’t kit cars at all, but rather perfect recreations of the original pre-war cars. Honestly, they’re more like production continuations of the original cars than anything. I mean Pur Sang even uses the original pre-war production techniques, the cars are made exactly as they originally were.
What’s crazy is that many owners of actual pre-war Bugattis are commissioning Pur Sang replicas of their priceless originals so they can enjoy driving them without risking a fortune. Imagine the thrill of driving one of these pre-war racing cars on the street, there’s gotta be nothing like it.
Enjoy the photos!
For the last 3 or 4 years, it has absolutely poured rain on the Sunday of the Greenwich Concours. This year kept that tradition alive, but I always stay out there, getting soaked, so I can shoot these priceless cars in the wet. Cars worth hundreds of thousands, or millions, of dollars are seldom taken out in wet weather, so it is an opportunity to snap some unique photos.
Bugatti was the featured marque this year, so I decided it was fitting to feature them as they were… all wet.
Enjoy!
On this week’s episode of “Things That Shouldn’t Be Here,” we have a very hot, very yellow Renault. This French hot hatch was never sold here in the US, but there it was, staring me in the the face deep in the American South. I had to do a double take.
Now, to be fair, it was parked outside the Lane Motor Museum, where they have all sorts of interesting cars, so it wasn’t entirely unexpected. It was cool to see that it had a Tennessee plate on it though, and it surely gets driven around on local roads.
It’s always awesome to see cars we don’t get here out and about on our roads.
Enjoy!
Continue reading Mégane II Renault Sport Spotted in Nashville, Tennessee
I got my first in-person look at the new Bugatti Chiron at the New York International Auto Show. Naturally it was from behind the fence meant to keep the proletariat at bay, but what I could see was spectacular. There seems to be another level of fine detail in the Chiron over that of the Veyron. It’s even more of a work of art, and that has become increasingly important for cars at this ultimate level.
One thing I noticed in particular was the Bugatti badge on the front grille. It has more dimension and appears to be hand made and hand painted. It helps give a little artisan appeal to the Chiron’s otherwise all-too-perfect modern mechanical nature.
Enjoy the photos of what should soon be confirmed as the fastest car in the world.
There are moments where circumstances align to create unbelievable opportunities, things that aren’t “supposed to happen,” but do anyway. Being prepared, in the right place at the right time is everything. So when I found myself on the Maryland shore on a picture perfect day, all alone with a 1936 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante, I knew I had to seize the moment.
I spent well over an hour pouring over this magnificent machine. A few other people strolled over to check it out, but for most of the time it was just me and this rolling French masterpiece. How often does anyone get to shoot a car worth well north of $10 million all alone in such a scenic location?
I mean, a shoot like this, with a car of this caliber, likely isn’t something I could even organize at this point. But in the situation as it played out, the opportunity presented itself at the St. Michaels Concours d’Elegance.
Enjoy the contrast between the stark, and dark, Art Deco lines of this Bugatti in the lush landscape of the Eastern Maryland shore.
Continue reading Some alone time with a Bugatti Type 57 Atalante
I do have a weakness for pre-war French cars. These were the chariots of the bourgeoisie, with their fantastic art deco style, artisan coachwork, and superior technology.
This Voisin C20 Simoun Underslung was the top sport model of the Voisin V-12 range. It commanded a hefty premium even over a comparable Bugatti of the day. Only 30 Voisin C20 chassis were originally built, and this one is supposedly the only survivor.
Enjoy the photos of this most-elegant machine.
Continue reading 1931 Voisin C20 Simoun Underslung at Hershey
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
1939, we all know what was happening in Europe at that time, but on the brink of the second World War, this Delage was competing in the last races before the onset of mass destruction.
It was the end of an era for the automobile, and after the war things would be faster, but they sure wouldn’t look as good. I mean look at the swooping fenders on this thing, it was as much about style as it was about speed. Pre-war era racing was a unique time in automotive history, one that will never be equalled in many respects. Racing had a lot more charm back then, it was more dangerous for it, but that also added to the appeal.
Enjoy daydreaming about this French masterpiece!
Continue reading This 1939 Delage D6 3 Liter Gran Prix is from the last glory days of French racing
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
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
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?
Mind Over Motor 