Bugatti Type 13

The Bugatti Type 13 was the first car produced Solely the "Bugatti" name plate. Production of the Type 13, and later Types 15, 17, 22, and 23, began with the company's founding in 1910 and lasted through 1920, with 435 examples produced. Most road cars used an eight-valve engine, though five Type 13 racers had 16-valve heads, some of the first ever produced. The road cars became known as pur-sang ("thoroughbred") in keeping with Ettore Bugatti's feelings for his designs.

The car was brought back after World War I with a multivalve engine to bring fame to the marque at Brescia. The production Brescia tourer also brought in much-needed cash.

Type 10

Bugatti Type 10
Overview
Manufacturer	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti
Also called	Bugatti Type 10 Pur Sang
Production	1907-1909
Assembly	Alsace, Germany
Designer	Ettore Bugatti
Body and chassis
Body style	Open Wheeler
Layout	Front Engine, RWD
Platform	Bugatti Type 9C-A
Related	Bugatti Type 9
Powertrain
Engine	1,131 cubic centimetres (69.0 cu in; 1.131 L) Deautz-Bugatti Derived Bugatti Inline 4
Power output	10 brake horsepower (10 PS; 7.5 kW) 17 newton-metres (13 lbf⋅ft)
Transmission	4-Speed Manual
Dimensions
Curb weight	365 kilograms (805 lb)
Chronology
Predecessor	Bugatti Type 9C-A

The Bugatti automobile was prototyped as the Type 10 in Ettore Bugatti's basement in 1908 and 1909 while he was chief engineer at Deutz Gasmotoren Fabrik in Cologne, Germany, as a modified version of the Bugatti Type 9C-A, but significantly destroked.

The Type 10 used a monobloc straight-four engine of Ettore's own design. It was an overhead-cam unit with two valves per cylinder, which was highly advanced for the time. A very-undersquare design, it had a 60 mm bore and 100 mm stroke for a total of 1.1 L (1131 cc/69 in³). This was attached to an open roadster body with solid axles front and rear. Leaf springs suspended the front with no suspension at all in the rear. Cables operated rear drum brakes.

On ending his contract with Deutz, Ettore loaded his family into the Type 10 and headed to the Alsace region, then still part of the German Empire, looking for a factory to begin producing cars of his own. After World War I, Alsace became a part of France again, and with it Bugatti.

The car was preserved and nicknamed "la baignoire" ("the bathtub") by the staff at Molsheim in later years due to its shape. Ettore restored it in 1939 and repainted it an orange-red color, earning it a new nickname, "le homard" ("the lobster"). It was moved to Bordeaux for the duration of World War II and remained there for decades before falling into private ownership. Today, the car is in California in the hands of a private collector.

Type 13

Bugatti Type 13 Bugatti Type 13 Brescia
Overview
Manufacturer	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti
Production	1910-1911, then 1920-1926
Model years	1911, then 1921-1926
Assembly	Molsheim, France
Designer	Ettore Bugatti
Body and chassis
Body style	Roadster
Layout	Front Engine, RWD
Powertrain
Engine	1,368–1,399 cubic centimetres (83.5–85.4 cu in; 1.368–1.399 L) Inline 4
Power output	16–30 brake horsepower (16–30 PS; 12–22 kW) @ 3,500-4,000 rpm 16–45 newton-metres (12–33 lbf⋅ft) @ 2,000-3,000 rpm
Transmission	4-speed Manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,590 millimetres (102 in)
Length	3,100 millimetres (120 in)
Width	1,100 millimetres (43 in)
Height	1,200 millimetres (47 in)
Curb weight	660–1,213 pounds (299–550 kg)

Upon starting operations at his new factory in Molsheim, Bugatti refined his light shaft-driven car into the Type 13 racer. This included boring the engine out to 65 mm for a total of 1.4 L (1368 cc/83 in³). A major advance was the four-valve head Bugatti designed — one of the first of its type ever conceived. Power output with dual Zenith carburetters reached 30 hp (22 kW) at 4500 rpm, more than adequate for the 660-lb (300-kg) car. Leaf springs were now fitted all around, and the car rode on a roughly 2-m (79-in) wheelbase. Although having the appearance of a toy, the Bugatti Type 13 was successfully raced. It was seen at hillclimbs as early as 1910 looking rather out of place compared to the bulky and brutish competition. What the Type 13 lacked in power, it made up in handling, steering, and braking. These important elements were retained throughout all future Bugatti designs. Top speed was at 125 km/h.

The new company produced five examples in 1910, and entered the French Grand Prix at Le Mans in 1911. The tiny Bugatti looked out of place at the race, but calmly took second place after seven hours of racing.

World War I caused production to halt in the disputed region. Ettore took two completed Type 13 cars with him to Milan for the duration of the war, leaving the parts for three more buried near the factory. After the war, Bugatti returned, unearthed the parts, and prepared five Type 13s for racing.

Post World War I, A Grand Prix for Voiturettes at Le Mans was the only French event of 1920, and Bugatti entered the two completed cars from Milan and one more from the remaining parts. Ettore's illegal act of placing a hand on the radiator cap during the race brought disqualification to the leading car, however.

The Type 13 was unbeatable. Bugatti's cars finished in the top four places at the Brescia Grand Prix in 1921, and orders poured in. Capitalizing on this victory, all subsequent four-valve Bugatti models bore the Brescia moniker.

These were the only Bugatti models to locate the carburettor on the left side of the engine and the exhaust on the right. Front-wheel brakes were added in 1926.

Type 15

Bugatti Type 15
Overview
Manufacturer	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti
Production	1910-1913
Assembly	Molsheim, France
Designer	Ettore Bugatti
Body and chassis
Body style	Roadster
Layout	Front Engine, RWD
Powertrain
Engine	1,399 cubic centimetres (85.4 cu in; 1.399 L) Inline 4
Power output	18 brake horsepower (18 PS; 13 kW) @ 3,000 rpm 18 newton-metres (13 lbf⋅ft) @ 1,100 rpm
Transmission	4-speed Manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,400 millimetres (94 in)
Length	3,800 millimetres (150 in)
Width	1,350 millimetres (53 in)
Height	1,220 millimetres (48 in)
Curb weight	1,433 pounds (650 kg)

The Type 15 was a version of the Type 13 with a longer, 2400-mm (94.5-in), wheelbase. It had a six-sided radiator in front and semielliptical rear leaf springs.

Type 17

Bugatti Type 17
Overview
Manufacturer	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti
Production	1917
Assembly	Molsheim, France
Designer	Ettore Bugatti
Body and chassis
Body style	Roadster
Layout	Front Engine, RWD
Powertrain
Engine	2,999 cubic centimetres (183.0 cu in; 2.999 L) Inline 4
Power output	44 brake horsepower (45 PS; 33 kW) @ 2,000 rpm 59 newton-metres (44 lbf⋅ft) @ 800 rpm
Transmission	4-speed Manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,550 millimetres (100 in)
Length	4,000 millimetres (160 in)
Width	1,500 millimetres (59 in)
Height	1,200 millimetres (47 in)
Curb weight	1,653 pounds (750 kg)

Another version, the Type 17, was also produced. This used a 2550-mm (100.4-in) wheelbase. It shared its hexagonal radiator and rear springs with the Type 15. The engine in the Type 17 was significantly upstroked from the Type 15

Type 22

Bugatti Type 22
Overview
Manufacturer	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti
Production	1915-1920
Assembly	Molsheim, France
Designer	Ettore Bugatti
Body and chassis
Body style	Roadster
Layout	Front Engine, RWD
Powertrain
Engine	2,999 cubic centimetres (183.0 cu in; 2.999 L) Inline 4
Power output	63 brake horsepower (64 PS; 47 kW) @ 3,000 rpm 102 newton-metres (75 lbf⋅ft) @ 1,500 rpm
Transmission	4-speed Manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,550 millimetres (100 in)
Length	4,850 millimetres (191 in)
Width	1,500 millimetres (59 in)
Height	1,200 millimetres (47 in)
Curb weight	1,489 pounds (675 kg)

The Type 15 was updated in 1913 as the Type 22. It had a larger roadgoing body, an oval radiator, and quarter-circle springs.

Type 23

Bugatti Type 23
Overview
Manufacturer	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti
Production	1920-1926
Assembly	Molsheim, France
Designer	Ettore Bugatti
Body and chassis
Body style	Roadster
Layout	Front Engine, RWD
Powertrain
Engine	1,496 cubic centimetres (91.3 cu in; 1.496 L) Inline 4
Power output	40 brake horsepower (41 PS; 30 kW) 67 newton-metres (49 lbf⋅ft)
Transmission	4-speed Manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,550 millimetres (100 in)
Length	4,300 millimetres (170 in)
Width	1,300 millimetres (51 in)
Height	1,160 millimetres (46 in)
Curb weight	1,062 pounds (482 kg)

This two-valve version of the Type 17 with a boat-tail body was built in 1913 as the Type 23. It also had the oval radiator of the Type 22. Post World War 1, Bugatti capitalized on the racing success of the Type 13 "Brescia" with the full-production postwar Brescia Tourer. It used the multivalve Brescia engine, and 2,000 examples were built from 1920 through 1926, making it the first full-production multivalve car ever made.

External links

• 1925 Bugatti Brescia Type-22 found at bottom of lake, sells for 260,500 euros Archived 2011-02-16 at the Wayback Machine - Radio France Internationale