1931 Bugatti Type 49 Saloon

This Bugatti Type 49 was built in August 1931 on the long 127-inch wheelbase. It was given its four-door Gangloff coachwork that December, then delivered to the Bugatti agent in Grenoble, France. The car's 3,257cc SOHC inline 8-cylinder engine has a single Schebler Updraft carburetor and produces 85 horsepower at 4,000 RPM. At some point, its original engine was exchanged for engine no. 305 from chassis 49439. There is a four-speed manual gearbox and four-wheel cable-operated drum brakes.

In 1963, this Bugatti was acquired by Claude Retornez in Marseilles, where the car had been registered since 1934.

This Bugatti was given a restoration in France in 1981. Additional restoration work was performed by Gentry Restorations in England in 2005. In 2012, the Mullin Collection purchased the Type 49, repainted it in its current color scheme, and displayed it at the Mullin Automotive Museum.

By Daniel Vaughan | May 2024