Press release7/18/2024

Bugatti Type 35: a timeless inspiration

Bugatti Type 35: a timeless inspiration

Molsheim

The Type 35 was born of Ettore Bugatti’s singular vision to create an automobile with cutting-edge technology, unrivalled driving characteristics and enduring form. As the most successful race car of all time, the Type 35 remains a powerful inspiration for the Molsheim brand today, with its DNA clearly evident in the new Bugatti Tourbillon hyper sports car.

The iconic horseshoe grille has undergone several evolutions over time, while remaining one of Bugatti's design signatures.
The iconic horseshoe grille has undergone several evolutions over time, while remaining one of Bugatti's design signatures.
The iconic horseshoe grille has undergone several evolutions over time, while remaining one of Bugatti's design signatures.
The iconic horseshoe grille has undergone several evolutions over time, while remaining one of Bugatti's design signatures.
The iconic horseshoe grille has undergone several evolutions over time, while remaining one of Bugatti's design signatures.
The Type 35 conquered motorsport like no other car ever has. This sporting DNA runs through every modern Bugatti, the Bolide first and foremost.
The Type 35 conquered motorsport like no other car ever has. This sporting DNA runs through every modern Bugatti, the Bolide first and foremost.
The Bugatti Type 35 can still be seen in action today, like at the 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed.
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Coming from a family of artists, it is no surprise that Ettore Bugatti insisted that aesthetics were of fundamental importance in everything he did. But as a gifted engineer, he also understood very clearly that form must follow function, and this innate understanding of design principles ensured that the cars he created were like no other – truly incomparable.

The Type 35, which made its debut in 1924, is the perfect embodiment of Ettore’s meticulous approach. The streamlined eight-cylinder machine partly owes its beautifully proportioned form to the need for frontal area aerodynamics. The car also stood apart because of the sheer attention its creator paid to every last detail.

“The mindset of Ettore Bugatti can be seen in every element of the Type 35. And while of course, technology moves on, the values that gave birth to the Type 35 – purpose-driven and completely authentic – remain to the fore in the creation of every contemporary Bugatti, including our new Tourbillon hyper sports car, today. “Ettore Bugatti was a master in creating innovative, cutting edge technology that had a certain aesthetic to it. From the vice on his work bench to the pasta machine that would supply pasta for customer dinners, both self-made, to the hospitality tent on the race track, this holistic approach, which the Type 35 was very much a part of, still lives on. And we nurture this legacy with pride and respect.”

Frank Heyl

Bugatti Director of Design

As well as being light, the hollow front axle fitted to the Type 35 was also beautifully finished, having a lustre to match that of the now-iconic horseshoe radiator cowl. The metal dashboard was finished in a process called “engine turn” that not only enhanced its appearance but also prevented stress cracks from forming. Even under the long, louvered bonnet, components, which many customers might never see, were all designed to look as good as they performed – the exquisitely-shaped exhaust manifolds of the 8-cylinder engine being just one example. These qualities were not lost on the press, with reporters who watched the Type 35’s debut grand prix at Lyon noting that the car immediately caught the imagination of those who saw it.

A century later the Type 35’s legacy, reputation and influence have only grown stronger. This is evidenced by the ‘Type 35 100 Anniversaire’ motifs proudly emblazoned on the front fenders of the Bugatti Bolide¹, finished in “Bleu de Lyon”, a hue very similar to its illustrious ancestor, that made a star appearance at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed. The car’s transformative combination of beauty, innovation, and technology are still a core element of Bugatti’s DNA today. So, it is no surprise that the Type 35B in Bugatti’s own collection serves as a constant source of inspiration for the brand’s design team. The perfect proportions of the fuselage-shape body, inspired the Veyron, Chiron² and now the Tourbillon³. The horseshoe grille of the brand’s latest model, although clearly an evolution of the original, is instantly recognisable and retains the same absolute design purity, and it is from this that all lines and volumes of the car originate.

Other elements of influence are more subtle but are no less important. The Type 35’s front brakes are controlled by a sophisticated linkage. It can be seen in operation from the driver’s seat, and provides a distinct mechanical connection between car and driver: a true human-machine interface. A similar principle guided the development of the intricate engine start lever found in the cabin of the Tourbillon. The mechanism used to bring the all-new naturally aspirated V16 to life has been also purposefully crafted to be a physical experience – a clear link to the glorious machines of the past.

Hidden away beneath the hyper sports car’s perfectly crafted carbon fibre exterior, the Tourbillon features innovations such as 3D-printed aluminium front suspension arms and uprights. This innovation reduces weight by 45 per cent and is a cutting-edge development that mirrors Ettore Bugatti’s breakthroughs with aluminium wheels and hollow axles pioneered on the Type 35.

Frank Heyl, Bugatti Director of Design, continued: “When a customer comes to the Molsheim Atelier and sees their car being built, even without the exterior body panels on it they immediately recognise it as a Bugatti because the whole car has a certain aesthetic, and every part has been designed to look beautiful. A Bugatti is timeless, and for something to be timeless it must be authentic, and that means that everything – right down to the last bolt – has to be purpose-driven and tell its own story. This is a continuation of Ettore Bugatti’s philosophy of technical beauty combined with the latest technology – the philosophy that made the Type 35 unbeatable, and that lives on at Bugatti to this day and influences everything that we do.”

Every car created in Molsheim is designed to endure not just for decades, but for centuries, and the new Tourbillon proudly continues this tradition. Like the Type 35 before it, the Tourbillon is an automotive icon “Pour l’éternité” – for eternity.

Press Contact

Nicole AugerHead of Marketing and Communicationsnicole.auger@bugatti.com

Fuel consumption and emissions

  • Bolide: Not subject to Directive 1999/94/EC, as it is a racing vehicle not intended for use on public roads.

    • Centodieci: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 40.31 / medium phase 22.15 / high phase 17.89 / extra high phase 17.12 / combined 21.47; CO2 emissions combined, g / km: NA; efficiency class: G

    • Chiron: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 44.56 / medium phase 24.80 / high phase 21.29 / extra high phase 21.57 / combined 25.19; CO2 emissions combined, g/km: 571.64; efficiency class: G

    • Chiron Profilée: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 44.56 / medium phase 24.80 / high phase 21.29 / extra high phase 21.57 / combined 25.19; CO2 emissions combined, g/km: 571.64; efficiency class: G

      • Chiron Pur Sport: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 44.56 / medium phase 24.80 / high phase 21.29 / extra high phase 21.57 / combined 25.19; CO2 emissions combined, g/km: 571.64; efficiency class: G

      • Chiron Sport: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 44.56 / medium phase 24.80 / high phase 21.29 / extra high phase 21.57 / combined 25.19; CO2 emissions combined, g/km: 571.64; efficiency class: G

      • Chiron Super Sport: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 40.31 / medium phase 22.15 / high phase 17.89 / extra high phase 17.12 / combined 21.47; CO2 emissions combined, g/km: 486.72; efficiency class: G

      • Chiron Super Sport 300+: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 40.31 / medium phase 22.15 / high phase 17.89 / extra high phase 17.12 / combined 21.47; CO2 emissions combined, g/km: 486.72; efficiency class: G

      • Divo: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 43,33 / medium phase 22,15 / high phase 17,99 / extra high phase 18,28 / combined 22,32; CO2 emissions combined, g/km: 505,61; efficiency class: G

      • La Voiture Noire: WLTP fuel consumption, l/100 km: low phase 43,33 / medium phase 22,15 / high phase 17,99 / extra high phase 18,28 / combined 22,32; CO2 emissions combined, g/km: 505,61; efficiency class: G

        • Tourbillon: This model is currently not subject to directive 1999/94/EC, as type approval has not yet been granted.

        • W16 Mistral: This model is not subject to Directive 1999/94/EC, as type approval has not yet been granted.

          Bugatti

          The specified fuel consumption and emission data have been determined according to the measurement procedures prescribed by law.

          Further information on official fuel consumption figures and the official specific CO2 emissions of new passenger cars can be found in the “Guide on the fuel economy, CO2 emissions and power consumption of new passenger car models”, which is available free of charge at all sales dealerships and from DAT Deutsche Automobil Treuhand GmbH, Hellmuth-Hirth-Str. 1, D-73760 Ostfildern, Germany and at www.dat.de.

          © 2024 Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S.