1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe
1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe
1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe
1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe
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Coachwork: Gangloff
Chassis Num: 57633-463
Engine Num: 463
 
This Bugatti was originally ordered by wealthy French Industrialist Fernand Crouzet and has a custom body by Gangloff that features unique bumpers and wheel discs.

During World War II, this Type 57 was hidden under hay in a barn in France. After the war, the car was refurbished by the Bugatti branch in Paris and was sent to England where it was used as a French Embassy car until 1948.

The car is powered by an in-line 3257 cc (3.3L) eight-cylinder engine coupled to a 4-speed manual transmission. The 3,415 pound vehicle was stopped by hydraulic brakes. The supercharged model had a top speed of 112 miles per hour. The car has been in private collections since the late 1940s.

This car was offered for sale at the 2006 Gooding & Company Auction held in Pebble Beach, Ca. It was estimated to sell for $650,000-$850,000 and was offered without reserve. All the benefits of this sale were to go to the Ministrelli Women's Heart Center at Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, Michigan.

This car has had a 100-point restoration in 2005. The interior is finished in an Ostrich patter, wool broadcloth headliner and French Walnut instrument panel. It has a correct Scintilla ignition switch, Scintilla coils and Bosch distributor.

At auction, the car was sold for $682,000.
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Coachwork: Gangloff
 
This supercharged Bugatti Type 57C Atalante has been referred to as 'the greatest barn-find ever,' and its story is certainly remarkable. John W. Straus, the grandson of the founder of Macy's department stores, parked this Bugatti in a Pound Ridge, New York, barn in 1962, and there it stayed until earlier in 2007. Mr. Nicotra placed the winning bid at an auction in June and immediately sent the car to his friend and preservation car expert Mark Smith, who confirmed the car's absolute integrity. After tending to a very few leaks and adding new oil, the engine was hand-cranked and sprang to life after 45 years. The only items that have been replaced, for safety's sake, are the tires. A truly unique Bugatti.
Many manufacturers during this time produced multi-purpose vehicles that could be driven to a race track, raced, and then driven home. The Bugatti Type 57, however, was solely a road-going vehicle and is considered the most celebrated of all non-racing Bugattis. Even though the Type 57 was strictly a road-going vehicle, a racing version was created for the 1937 24-Hours of Le Mans race. This vehicle, based on the Type 57S chassis and named the 57G, won the race. A supercharged version was created for the 1939 Le Mans race and also was victorious. This is the legacy of the Bugatti heritage and the quality and innovative designs that were truly masterpieces in all respects.

In 1934, the Type 57C entered the scene, a project headed by Jean Bugatti, the son of Ettore Bugatti. The vehicle centered around refinement while focusing on the values that had made Bugatti successful.

Three 'factory' bodies were available and consisted of the Ventoux, a two-window and four window version, the Stelvio, and the Atalante. All of the Atalante bodies were produced and all were done in-house. The Atalante was named after peaks in the Alps and is one of the most exclusive bodystyles ever produced by Bugatti.

The Type 57 could also be ordered with Galibier four-door bodies. Ealier versions of the Galibier bodies had suicide-opening front doors with no pillar. Later versions had suicide-opening front doors and rear doors hung in the traditional fashion. The front and rear doors would share a common pillar.

Jean designed an indepenent front suspension to aide in the handling of the vehicle. This was not popular with Ettore Bugatti and had the traditional Bugatti front axle installed.

A 3.3 liter, twin-cam, straight-eight engine was used to power this vehicle. Even with the heavy saloon bodies, the engine could propel the vehicle to a speed of around 95 mph. A Roots-type supercharger was later added and the vehicle was given the designation 57C. The supercharger was quiet and provided between three to four pounds of boost pressure. The addition of the supercharger increased the horsepower rating to 175.

The Type 57S version was a 'sportier' version of the Type 57. The chassis was shorter, with the rear axle running through the frame. A slightly tuned engine with higher compression and a dry sump lubrication helped increase the performance of the car. The front and rear axles received de Ram shock aborbers, replacing the Hartford Friction dampers.

The Type 57SC was a combination of the 57C and 57S. The engine produced between 200 and 220 horsepower.

On August 11, 1939 while testing a Type 57C tank-bodied racer near Molsheim, Jean Bugatti was killed. This was the same day as the start of the 2nd World War, which inevitably meant that the race Jean was preparing the vehicle for would never be run.
Ettore Arco Isidoro Bugatti was born in Milan, Italy in 1881. His father, Carlo, was a furniture designer of some fame. The father's brother, Rembrandt, was a gifted sculptor of animals. When he was old enough, Ettore attended the Brera Academy of Art where he studied sculpture. Soon, he turned his attention to mechanical endeavors.

The first Bugatti motor car was built in 1899 though the first vehicle to bear his name was the Type 13 of 1910. Power came from a four-cylinder, eight-valve engine. The 1913 the radiators became more rounded and in the shape of a horse shoe.

The company's first eight-cylinder engine production car was introduced in 1922 and dubbed the Type 30. The engine had a single overhead camshaft and displaced two liters. The car had a drum brakes, solid axles and leaf springs on all four corners.

The Type 35 in all sequences, the A, B, C, and T, were some of Bugatti's early examples that made the marque famous. The Type 57 introduced in 1934 and continued in production until 1940. They were powered by a 3257cc straight-eight engine with double overhead camshafts that produced between 130 and 140 horsepower. There were four road-going versions of the 57 and these were the Type 57, Type 57C, Type 57S, and Type 57SC. The Type 57C was a supercharged version while the Type 57S was a sporty version based on a short and lower wheelbase. The Type 57SC was a combination of the 57S and 57C. A variety of body-styles were offered throughout the years.

The engine rested in a ladder-type frame and matted to a four-speed manual gearbox. The front had a tubular axle with the suspension comprised of longitudinally mounted semi-elliptic leaf springs. The rear axle was suspended in place by a pair of quarter-elliptic leaf springs. The early versions of the vehicle had cable-operated drums on all four wheels. Later versions were upgraded with Lockheed hydraulic brakes with twin master cylinder, which first appeared in 1938.

The Type 57 and its variants were intended for road going use. However, many made their way onto the racing circuit. Lord Howe drove a Type 57 to a third place finish in the 1935 Tourist Trophy. A Type 57G won the Monthlhery and Reims race in 1936. In 1937, Jean-Pierre Wimille and Robert Benoist drove a Bugatti to victory at LeMans.

Many of the cars were clothed by prominent coachbuilders such as Figoni, Van Vooren, Corsica, and James Young. Most of the chassis were bodied by the factory with coachwork in the style of Jean Buggatti. The catalog bodies included two versions of the Ventoux Coupe, the Galibier four-door sedan, the Stelvio cabriolet, Atalante, and Atlantic. The Atlantic and Atalante were constructed in two-door coupe configuration. Gangloff, a Swiss coachbuilder, was tasked with clothing most of the factory bodies.

Photos grouped by event

Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance

Gooding & Company Pebble Beach Auction

2006 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance

1938 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante Coupe

Year1938
MakeBugatti
ModelType 57 Atalante Coupe
Engine LocationFront
Drive TypeRear Wheel
Production Years for Series1934 - 1940
Coach WorkGangloff
Weight3415 lbs | 1549 kg
Combined MPG0.00

Chassis / Engine Numbers Shown
Chassis Number57633-463
Engine Number463

Performance
Top Speed112 mph | 180.2 km/h Similar top speeds

Engine  
Engine ConfigurationI
Cylinders8
Aspiration/InductionSupercharged
Roots Type
Displacement3257.00 cc | 198.8 cu in. | 3.3 L.
Valves16 valves.
2 valves per cylinder.
ValvetrainDOHC
Horsepower160.00 BHP (117.8 KW) @ 5000.00 RPM
HP to Weight Ratio21.3 LB / HP (Vehicles with similar ratio)
HP / Liter48.5 BHP / Liter
Redline5000
Fuel TypeGasoline - Petrol
Vehicles with similar horsepower and weight

Standard Transmission
Gears4
TransmissionManual
Clutch Type: Dry, single-plate; double reduction lever


 
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Articles and Event Coverage
Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance
Gooding & Company Pebble Beach Auction
2006 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance

Additional Resources and Links
Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance Official Website
Gooding & Company Auction : Pebble Beach Official Website
Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance Official Website

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Best car ever

Replies: 1
Monday, October 29, 2007

1938 Bugatti models
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