Bugatti Vehicles

Overview

    Long regarded as one of the most exclusive and prestigious marques in history, the company was founded by Italian Ettore Bugatti in Alsace (then part of the German Empire, before reverting to France after World War I); production began in 1912. The company quickly became famous for its Grand Prix racing pedigree, and sold a series of sports cars and touring cars with superchargers and straight-four or -eight engines. Like most marques of the era, it offered a range of body styles on its chassis. Its Type 57 Atlantic is often considered to be one of the most beautiful cars ever built. Perhaps even more famous was the Royale, a massive 7000 lb. car with a 12.7-liter (!) straight-eight engine: only six were built, and it remains the most expensive car ever sold, costing more than $30,000 in 1930. The death of Bugatti himself, coupled with the destruction of the factory during the German occupation in World War II, was a fatal blow to the marque, and the company shut down in 1956. Bugatti was briefly resurrected in the late 1980s as Bugatti Automobili SpA in Campogalliano, Italy. About 100 cars (the company's only model was the EB110 supercar, an AWD mid-engined coupe powered by a quad-turbo small-displacement V-12) were produced before the company went bankrupt. The name was bought by Volkswagen in 1998 as Bugatti Automobiles SAS. After a series of concept cars, it was decided to inaugurate production with a production version of the EB 16/4 Veyron concept. Production began again in Molsheim in 2006. Bugatti Automobiles SAS is wholly owned by Volkswagen AG. Bugatti's headquarters are in Molsheim, Alsace, French Republic, and all Bugatti models are produced at its Molsheim factory.

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