These old photos were taken prior to the sale of the factory cars to F.Schlumpf.The white T57 was Roland Bugatti's daily runaround.

more cars at the factory

I don't think that Ettore would have been amused by the "workers" standing on his Royale !

The background is sometimes more interesting than the subject,just look at all those T46 chassis still unsold in the 1960's thirty years later.

Here some other Pre-Schlumpf info (courtesy "Bugantics 1995" and Lennart Hajaanen)

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Vive la Marque !!

It also says "type 57C wreck, minus engine" I presume this must be the type 57G wreck (Le Mans 1937)

What happened to the type 57C wreck in which Jean was killed anyhow? I heard rumours that it was buried?

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I think also that the T57G wreck for being meant must…

During one of my visits in the fifties I took these pictures of the then ´´modern´´ type 101.

Very nice pictures, thank you!

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ex Maurice Trintignant

to see : http://www.bugattiregister.com/wiki/ind ... 6453_BH_75

6453 BH 75 (F) or 6453 DH 75 (F) ????

Yes Herman, the T57G in which Jean was killed was broken up and then buried "somewhere on the grounds" of the Molsheim factory. Many people have searched for it without any luck, so far.

Johan

You would think modern technology would reveil the place of the burial in no-time...

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Vive la Marque !!

Here is a passage from the book of L.G Matthews Jr, Bugatti Yesterday and Today "The Atlantic and Other Articles", Chapter Conversations with René Rieger, page 107 to 111 :

René is one of few witnesses still living who viewed Jean's twisted car a dozen hours after the fatal accident. Workers from the plant came to transfer the remains of the car to the factory at Molsheim, where the remains were buried in the park for eternity. No one now knows exactly where they are. Robert Stoehr, former head of the repair department for Ettore told me that he perfectly remenbered the moment when the workers brought back the wreckered car to the plant. It was really broken in two lengthwise. During the war, when the Germans occupied the factory, they tried to find the remains of Jean's car, especially the engine, but they found nothing. It is well they did not.

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Make your dream devour your life, so that life doesn't devour your dream.
[Antoine de Saint-Exupéry]

That raises 2 questions:

Were they indeed not able to find the car? It seems to me that, as the Germans occupied the factory not so long after the burial, the earth still must have been disturbed.

Second, Why would they want the engine? Is it a really special engine? The Germans were already winning in sports events (Mercedes, Auto Union) and it would be much easier to just confiscate a type 57?

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Vive la Marque !!

It's great seeing real pictures by a real enthusiast from the era. Please post more if you get the chance -- in hi-resolution if possible. Most of us not only study the car in primary focus but the background details as well. This is the "true history" and not something created by a writer thousands of miles away who might never have actually visited the facility and only has stories 3rd hand via others.

Thank you for posting!

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me: Mark - home: Gilbert, Arizona now