Description
Type 44 was Ettore Bugatti’s first touring and most successful car with 1095 units produced between 1927 and 1930. Unlike its Type 38-derived chassis and Type 40 / 43-derived drivetrain, its engine was a significant improvement of Type 28’s 3-liter 8-cylinder design. It featured 2 cast iron cylinder blocks, single overhead camshaft, 24 valves (16 inlet/ 8 exhaust) and 1 spark per cylinder. To provide smoother and quieter operation Ettore upgraded its 2 piece crankshaft with a vibration damper and 9 plain bearings instead of previous roller type. Ample lubrication was achieved via full pressure feeding and moving the oil pump next to the oil sump. Fitting a new Shebler SV 14 carburettor and a Delco ignition coil allowed for greater power output throughout a wider range of rpms consistent with the Type 44’s touring profile. The body would be styled by most reputable coachbuilders of the era including Weymann, Kellner, James Young, Gangloff, Graber and Gerber into roadsters, coupes, 2 and 4 door tourers as well as 4 door saloons. Out of all body types offered, Ettore and his son Jean, felt the Fiacre 2 door coupe displayed the finest and most elegant proportions. However its cost and time to construct were twice that of other body types thereby permitting only a handful to be made.
Chassis 441052 was produced in 1929 with a special body by Weymann of Paris that featured the Fiacre fixed head coupe proportions in a unique 3-position drop head coupe design. Its first owner was Marquis Jean de Suarez d’ Aulan a famous French aristocrat, fighter pilot and racing driver who was awarded a class win at 1931 Paris-Deauville Rally with the car. Three decades later, a well renowned Bugatti collector discovered its elegance on display at the Montlhéry Motor Museum in France. In turn he conducted a complete 2-year long restoration and included it amongst the 30 exhibits in the Transport Museum in Dissen, Germany and later these of the Vicarage Cottage Car and Model Collection in Dorset, UK. In 2000 it became part of a private collection in Surbiton to be soon after acquired by a marque enthusiast, adamant collector and founder of the Hellenic Motor Museum in Athens, Greece. Offered for the first time in nearly 2 decades, chassis 441052 presents a unique opportunity to acquire a cornerstone in Ettore’s and Jean’s ingenuous inspiration and production history in undoubtedly its most elegant form.
Year: 1929
Make: Bugatti
Model: Type 44
Body type: Fiacre 3-position Drop Head Coupe
Coachbuilder: Carrosseries C. T. Weymann, Paris, France
Molsheim chassis number: 441052
Date of dispatch: 19/ 07/ 1929
Weymann body number: 5362
Molsheim engine and bonnet number: 788
Engine type: 2991 cc, in line 8 cyl., twin cast iron blocks, centrally driven SOHC, 16 inlet/ 8 exhaust valves, twin piece crankshaft on 9 plain bearings and vibration damper, single Schebler SV14 carburettor, full pressure feed lubrication, single plug per cyl., Delco ignition coil, 80 bhp at 4000 rpm output
Transmission: 4 speed manual with wet. multiplate clutch
Rear axle: spiral bevel, 12/ 50 ratio
Suspension: leaf springs, F: semi elliptic / R: reverse quarter elliptic
Brakes: cable operated with alloy rings pressed over 330 mm drums
Wheels: 19in Rudge wires with knock off spinners
Exterior color: black/ red
Soft top color: black
Interior color, trim: red, leather
Current mileage: 72048 km
Former mileage: 71986 km, April 2006
Current registration: SV 7765, issued in the UK on June 1999
Former registrations: 5569RG4 in France, 0S06093 in Germany
Ownership history:
1st: Marquis Jean de Suarez d’ Aulan, France
2nd: Mr. Barrois, France
3rd: Mr. J. Thysbart, France
4th: Montlhéry Motor Museum, France
5th: Dr. P. B., France/ Germany/ UK, 1968-n/ a
6th: Mr. R. L., Surbiton, UK, 2000 to 2007
7th: Mr. Th. Ch. & family, Hellenic Motor Museum, 2007-present
Distinctions:
Class win at 1931 Paris- Deauville Rally
Articles:
Motor Revue, No 79, Autumn 1971, p84-91
Private collections:
- Montlhéry Motor Museum, Montlhéry, France, up till 1968
- German Transport Museum, Dissen, Germany, 1978-1996
- Vicarage Cottage Car and Model Collection, Milton Abbas, Dorset, UK, 1998
- Hellenic Motor Museum, Athens, Greece, 2011-2024
Restoration/ repair history:
1968 – 1970, total restoration under Dr. P. B.
1998: engine and front axle overhaul with 2 new Koux blocks
2004: new petrol tank and new Blockley tyres
