Description
By: Jonathan Wood .
This painstakingly researched book is the first major appraisal of the life of artist engineer Ettore Bugatti and his extraordinary cars to appear since 1963.
Motoring historian Jonathan Wood has endeavoured not to be swayed by the Bugatti legend, but placed the achievements of the man and his cars firmly in perspective. In doing so, he akes a host of revelations, including what he believes to be the true origins of the famous Bugatti horseshoe-shaped radiator.
Fully illustrated throughout, Bugatti The Man and the Marque is enhanced by many hitherto unpublished photographs.
Ettore Bugatti built about 7,800 cars between 1910 and 1939, and the survivors are among the most sought- after cars in the world today. Bugatti, an Italian by birth who built his cars in France, came from a talented artistic family, which perhaps explains the outstanding aesthetic qualities displayed by his cars. Yet despite the fact that Bugatti received no technical education, his cars were also some of the fastest of their day.
A glance at some of the models explains their enduring desirability: there was the exquisite Type 35, one of the most successful racing cars of all time; the massive Royale, of which only six were built; and the bizarre 57S Atlantic coupe, the work of Ettore's eldest son, Jean.
This volume describes all the models, charts the switchback fortunes of the Bugatti marque, and chronicles the name's revival, which began in Italy in 1988. Comprehensively illustrated, and written in a straightforward style, this book will appeal to past and present Bugatti owners, along with all those who have aspired to the ownership of this most sought after of motor cars.
