The Bugattis at
the
Musee National de l'Automobile
September 13
The French National Automobile Museum is, simply put, the most outstanding, amazingly awesome, car museum in the world. 150,000 sq ft of public space. 400 vehicles on display (380 cars, 10 motorcycles, and a few ancient trucks and busses).
About 125 of these cars are Bugattis Good grief, there are 3 Bugatti Royales - of the 7 total in existence - any one of which is worth well over $10million. We spent 7 hours there - Bob took 595 pictures and Terry was the last to leave having worn out the batteries on two audio guides.
As you enter, you pick up an audio guide which has short details about probably 30% of the cars. Then there's a movie about Fritz Schlumpf, then you are confronted by the 8th Royale - the one Fritz built out of spare parts when he bought the remains of the Bugatti factory. Then you enter the museum proper and see rows and rows of historic cars. They are arranged sort of chronologically, at least by era. Stuff from the 1800s comes first, then you progress through the aisles up until the 1970s. This makes up the main part of the museum.
All of the cars are European and most of them are French. It's nice to see worn chrome in places and even some paint chips. There are also oil spots in the gravel under many of the cars.
Here are the Bugattis. The pictures are more or less arranged chronologically and by "type". To Bugatti, a type was the chassis, ie Type 35. Variants of engines were subtypes, ie Type 35A. One type may have road cars, race cars, roadsters, coupes, and sedans. The bodies constantly changed in detail as all of the cars were hand-built and the more expensive cars were styled specifically for the customer.
But before we start, a bit about Fritz Schlumpf. He and his brother Hans owned a textile mill, really a whole bunch of textile mills because they had bought out a lot of the competition. They were rich. Rich and strange. But by all reports they were good owners, the employees were very happy.
Then in 1950s money pre-war cars took a nose-dive price-wise since smaller cars were all the rage in Europe what with tight money, reconstruction, expensive gas, and the availability again of new cars. The same thing happened in America, only the new cars were larger than the 1930s models.
So Fritz bought a Bugatti. Then another. By 1960 he owned 10. And some Rolls Royces and a Hispano Suiza. By 1961 they owned 40 cars and wanted more. Sellers came out of the woodwork. By 1962 they owned 70 Bugattis. He bought 18 more from Ettore Bugatti's estate in 1963 and 30 more from an American collector in 1965. They topped 100 Bugattis in 1967. And that was only half of their total collection at that time.
Digression about Ettore Bugatti: He was strange too. He and his son Jean designed and built expensive sports cars and even more expensive touring cars in Molshiem, France, for the rich and famous. His racing team won several Grands Prix and that notoriety made everybody who was anybody want a Bugatti. Ettore died in 1947 and the factory closed with him.
Bugattis are often delicate, always reliable, always fast. His engineering was "innovative". Sometimes parts are elegant. Sometimes cylinder heads were machined from square billets - but with engine-turned finishes. Sometimes the cars are breathtakingly beautiful. Sometimes so ugly they bring tears to your eyes.
Bugattis were always the embodiment of Ettore's vision.
One story tells of a customer who brought his car back to the factory for engine work. Ettore saw him at the factory and said "I understand you've brought your car back 3 times now because the engine has overheated."
"Yes".
"Don't let it happen again."
Ettore's grandfather, father, and brother were all sculptors.
OK, back to Fritz Schlumpf. The collection and restoration became so immense he closed one of the extraneous mills and turned it into a private (very private) museum and restoration shop. Over 200,000 sq ft. That's where the collection resides today. He remodeled the interior with wide tile walkways and gravel beds for the cars to sit on.
The mill he used was extraneous because Asia was starting to make clothing for Europe. By 1976 the whole business was in trouble. The workers were asked to make huge concessions to keep in business but they couldn't afford to do that. They struck in 1977 and when they found out about the collection they occupied the building and even burnt a couple of mundane cars to prove they were serious. This went on until 1979 when the business went bankrupt and the museum was opened to the public by the former workers. The building and collection is owned now by the city of Mulhouse, the Alsace government, and the Automobile Club of France. Fritz died in 1992 and in 1999, after a bunch of lawsuits, about $20million was finally paid to his widow for the property.
The collection is the embodiment of one man's obsession with another man's obsession. That said. on with the pictures - in chronological order with the racing cars at the end. These aren't even a third of the cars on view (that aren't Bugattis).
It's interesting that two models are missing from the Schlumpf collection - an original Benz patent car and a Bugatti Atlantique, considered the most beautiful Bugatti.
Bob had been looking forward to seeing the Schlumpf Collection for the entire trip. Terry says it's one man's obsession with another man's obsession with another man's obsession. This is one place that didn't disappoint. But it is pretty difficult to photograph black cars in a dark room.
4 cylinders, 1855cc, 10hp.
This is the prototype car built by Ettore for a small people's car. He sold the manufacturing license to Peugeot who made it as the model BB.
Type 13 - 1913
4 cylinders, 1327cc, 15hp.
This Type 13 Torpedo was found in a shed near the sea in the 1960s.
Type 13 - 1921
4 cylinders, 1453cc, 30hp.
Type 16 - 1912 "Garros"
4 cylinders, 5027cc, 100hp.
This car was fitted with a transparent bonnet for display in the museum.
Type 17
4 cylinders, 1368cc, 18hp. Based on a stretched Type 13.
This Torpedo 3-seater has mahogany "boat" bodywork and a mother-in-law seat.
Type 28
8 cylinders, 2995cc, 90hp. Bugati's first 8-cylinder car.
This was the prototype car for the Type 28.
It has rudimentary front wheel brakes and an adjustable steering wheel.
Type 30
8 cylinders, 1991cc, 75hp.
The Type 30 was first built as racing cars and later made as 2-place touring cars with "torpedo" bodies such as this one of 1925.
Type 32 - 1923 "Tank"
8 cylinders, 1991cc, 75hp. This engine was later used in the Type 35s.
This Tank was entered in the 1923 Tours Grand Prix. It wasn't aerodynamically stable on turns at speed but went like stink in a straight line. It is supposed that Ettore entered the race claiming he didn't have time to design a proper body. But later that year the car was entered in a high-speed trial for GP cars and it did 189kmph.
Type 35
8 cylinders, 1991cc, 95hp.
35As had only 75hp. It was made for young drivers and sold for 2/3 the price of
a Type 35.
35Cs had 125hp with a compressor.
35Bs had 2261cc and 140hp.
A strictly racing model. From 1925 through 1927, Type 35s won 1851 races.
1925.
Type 35A 1926.
Type 35C 1926.
The 35C was the first Bugatti to use their famous alloy spoke wheels with
integrated brake drum.
Type 35B 1927.
Yes, built strictly as a racing car. Very lightweight and fragile fenders.
Bob's favorite.
Type 35A 1928.
This unique 35A was built for Elisabeth Junek of Czechoslovakia with a 95 hp
engine.
She ran it in the 1929 Targa Florio.
35B 1929.
The 35B had a supercharger to produce 140hp from its 8 cylinder 2263cc engine.
Fritz Schlumpf drove this one in many hill-climbs.
Type 35C 1929.
Type 37
4 cylinders, 1496cc, 70hp.
Type 37A produced 100hp with a supercharger. 67 were built between 1926 and
1930.
1928.
This car was originally sold in Munich and found by Schlumpf in Chicago.
Type 37A 1929.
Type 38
8 cylinders, 1991cc, 70hp.
1927 Sport.
This car was rebodied by an American named Shaw somewhere along the line
and the wheelbase was drastically shortened.
1927 Torpedo.
Body built by the Gangloff coachworks.
The trunk can have a rumble seat added.
Type 40
4 cylinders, 1496cc, 45hp. Used the Type 37 racing engine. Not a speed demon by any means. These were built as affordable town cars and could only go about 75mph. 790 Type 40s were built.
1926 Roadster.
1928 Berline.
This 1929 chassis with rudimentary seats and pickup bed
was a French military vehicle used in Egypt.
1929 Coupe.
The coach-styled body with small black and white checkerboard
painting was used by the factory on many cars.
This was one of the cars Schlumpf got from John Shakespeare in a trade.
Type 40A. 1929 Roadster.
Type 41 - Royale
Seven Royales were built by the factory and one, the most beautiful, by the museum (see below). The first was destroyed so there are 6 now in existence (plus the 8th). They had hand-built bodies by various custom coachbuilders and several have had numerous bodies mounted over the years.
In the 1990s, one Royale was sold for $13,000,000.
They are 18 feet long with 8-cylinder, 12,760cc engines producing about 300hp. More engines were built and used in locomotives. Several of these engines are still running in ski lifts and power generation plants.
The Chauffer Coupe below was built in 1929 on the prototype chassis with a body designed by Jean, then 20 years old. It was Ettore's personal car.
This 1933 Royale ended up in the hands of an American, John Shakespeare. Fritz Schlumpf obtained it from his with 30 other cars of his collection for $70,000 and trade for some cars in the Schlumpf inventory - the only time Fritz ever let go of a car.
The 8th Royale. 1990
In 1990 the museum went to the parts bin that Schlumpf had bought from the Bugatti factory and found enough parts to make one more Royale. The body is an exact copy of a roadster Royale built for a customer in the 1920s. That car was rebodied as a limousine later so it's fitting that a lost Royale came back into existance.
Type 43
8 cylinder, 2661cc, 125hp. Type 43s were similar to Type 35 racing cars in many ways including the wheels and pointed rear end. They used the same chassis and the same engine in a detuned state (125 instead of 140hp).
1929 Grand Sport.
This car was sold to King Leopold of Belgium.
1930 Torpedo Grand Sport.
Built as a tourer to look remarkably like a Type 35 race car.
Type 43A 1930.
Sales of the 43 were falling by 1930 and Bugatti tried to add a
golf bag compartment and widen the trunk.
Type 44
8 cylinders, 2992cc, 80hp.
The Type 44 was designed to enclose the entire body in front of the rear wheels. This coach coupe is typical of the type.
1927.
Type 46
8 cylinders, 5350cc, 140hp. The 46S had 160hp with a compressor.
The Type 46 was known as the Little Royale because of its big engine. Bugatti hoped to compete with Rolls Royce and Hispano-Suiza.
1930 Cabriolet.
This is a 3-seater with a body built by Letourneur. The rear seat is transverse.
1930 Limousine.
This car has 300,000 km on the odo.
1931 Roadster.
1933 Berline.
Body by Million-Guiet in aluminum. There is no pillar between the front and rear
doors.
1933 Coach.
Jean originally designed this body for a Type 50 but it ended up on this Type
46.
1934 Berline.
Type 46S 1934 Berline
This car was found in a warehouse in Marseille with only 400km on the odometer.
Scooter
This little electric buggy was built in 1931 to drive around the factory. One was also built for Bugatti's estate and a third was built for a customer and sold for about half the price of a new Peugeot at the time. The least expensive Bugatti.
Type 49
8 cyliinders, 3257cc, 90hp. Excellent luxurious touring cars and profitable for the factory although only 470 were built. Production ended with the introduction of the Type 57.
Note the cast aluminum wheels which resemble the Royales'.
1933 Berline.
This car was owned by Bugatti factory race driver, Jules Goux.
1933 Coupe.
1933 Coupe.
Body designed by the coach builder Gangloff and built by the Bugatti factory.
1934 Berline.
This car was renovated by the Bugatti factory and was
driven 12,000km since then before being sold to Schlumpf.
1934 Berline.
1934 Cabriolet.
1934 Limousine.
With two jumpseats and a Type 57 radiator.
Type 50T - 1936
8 cylinders, 4900cc, 200hp. Comparably few of these big, powerful luxury cars were made as the depression was well underway. This one was built for Pierre Michelin.
Type 51
8 cylinders, 2263cc, 190hp.
51As had 140hp from a 1492cc engine. Built for Formula 1500 races.
The Type 51 was the replacement of the Type 35. It was beefier and had a bigger engine. They were all built as Grand Prix factory race cars and sold to private individuals only after at least one race.
Type 51A 1932.
Type 51A 1933.
Type 52
In 1927 the factory built a 1/2 size copy of the Type 35 race car for Ettore's son, Roland. It has an electric engine and could go about 15mph. This model became a popular accessory for buyers and they built dozens over the years.
Type 55
8 cylinder engines. 2261cc. 160hp. The engine and chassis was based on the Type 51 Grand Prix cars. 0 to 60mph times in the 13 second range. They were noisy and a lot of engine heat came into the passenger compartment.
1932 Coupe.
1932 Coupe.
Jean drove this car from Molsheim to Paris at an average speed of 120kmph.
Can't you imagine Henry Ford looking at this car in 1932 and saying
"That's the way my coupes should look"?
1932 Coupe.
1932 Roadster.
1933 Roadster.
1934 Roadster.
Originally built as a coupe, this car was raced by owners on both sides of the
Atlantic.
1935 Roadster.
Type 57
8 cylinders, 3257cc. 135hp. Type C (compressor) produced 160hp. Type 57S was supercharged with 175hp. The SC made 200hp. The engine block and transmission housing are a combined casting.
57SCs were very expensive and only a couple dozen were made. The factory lost money on each one.
Type 57s were all right hand drive. Ettore and Jean disagreed about this decision but Ettore won out. From 1935, the factory went to one model of road car, the Type 57, except for some few Type 50Ts. This was the last model Bugatti except for some attempts to get back to production after the war.
1935 Coach.
1936 Cabriolet - "Stelvios"
Body by Gangloff.
1936 Cabriolet.
Obviously the body has been replaced but no details were available.
1936 Coupe. - "Ventoux".
They called this type of body style "Ventoux" named after a hillclimb event.
Type 57 1936.
Body by Labourdette with very thin window pillars.
Type 57C 1936 Coupe.
57 1937.
1937 Coupe. - "Ventoux"
57S Coupe 1937 - "Atalante".
47SC Coupe 1937 - "Atalante".
57SC Coupe 1957 - "Atalante".
Type 57C. 1938 Berline.
Type 57S 1938 Cabriolet.
Body by Van den Plas of England.
Type 57SC 1938 Cabriolet.
Type 57SC 1938 Couple.
Type 57 1939.
Type 57C. 1939 Berline "Galibier".
Lowered hood and headlights integrated into the fender wings.
57C Cabriolet 1939.
Type 57SC 1939.
This car was rebodied by Ghia in 1951.
Type 59/50B - 1938
8 cylinders, 4741cc, 400hp.
This car placed 2nd in the Comminges GP driven by Jean-Pierre Wimille.
Type 64 - 1939
8 cylinders, 4432cc, 185hp. The last car designed by Jean Bugatti (he was killed in an accident while road testing a Bugatti). The company wasn't in good financial condition by this time and war was on the horizon. This prototype was the only Type 64 built.
Type 73A - 1947
4 cylinders, 1480cc. Ettore designed this body, built by Levallois, but it never went into production (thankfully). It was Ettore's last design.
Type 101
8 cylinders, 3257cc, 140hp.
Ettore died during the war and his son, Roland, tried to revive the factory in the 1950s with money raised from friends. They were built with pre-war chassis and spare parts from the factory.
1951 Cabriolet.
1951 Coupe.
6 of these cars were built.
1952 Sedan.
Type 251 - 1955
8 cylinders, 2421cc, 230hp.
Roland also tried racing to garner publicity for the company. The Type 251, though, was not competitive.
Type 252 - 1957
4 cylinders, 1490cc, 120hp. This was designed as an sports car to revive the factory. This prototype is the only one built.
The Bugatti name still isn't dead. There's a 1000hp. rear engine supercar being built with the Bugatti name and miniature horseshoe grill. It's not part of the Bugatti heritage though, just the name.