1930 Bugatti Type 44 Touring

At the Paris Motor Show in 1927, Bugatti introduced their Type 44 touring model. Production would continue through 1930, with a total of 1,095 examples being produced. The engine was a straight eight-cylinder engine in two cast iron blocks of four, a single overhead camshaft, and two inlets and one exhaust valve per cylinder. The total displacement was 2,991cc and produced an estimated 80 horsepower. The car earned the moniker 'The Buick of Molsheim' thanks to its crankshaft that was fitted with a vibration damper giving the car great smoothness of operation.

This example has been chronicled in Bugantics 18-2-9 (the Quarterly Journal of the Bugatti Owner's Club), in Hugh Conway's 1962 Bugatti Register, the American Bugatti Register of 1988, and in Pur Sang 16-4 (the Journal of the American Bugatti Club).

The car was originally invoiced to Magasin, Paris, and later owned in the 1930s by Alber Bovy of Belgium. Jean De Dobbeleer later purchased the car and sold it via Gene Cesari to Moe Sherid of Pennsylvania. In 1962, E.R. Thompson of Ford City, PA, purchased the car from Sherid. The car was driven to Thompson's home and put in his garage, where it would remain for a number of years. Thompson sold the car in the early 1970s to noted collector Edsel Pfabe. Pfabe treated the car to a restoration, re-chroming the bumper and replaced engine number 238 with engine number 658. Parts from the original engine were incorporated into 658. Currently, the only discernable engine number, however, is '238', the number of the original engine, which is stamped on the lower half of the block, on the driver's side.

After the completion of the restoration, the car was donated to the Crawford Auto Aviation Museum, where it was on display prior to being brought to auction. Currently, the car has no top and is not in running condition. The engine is not seized and it does turn over.

It is believed that this is the only two-door, four-passenger phaeton known to exist.

In 2009, this Type 44 Touring car was offered for sale at the Vintage Motor Cars of Hershey sale presented by RM Auctions, where it was estimated to sell for $85,000 - $120,000. As bidding came to a close, the lot had been sold for the sum of $187,000, including the buyer's premium.

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2009