yes, like at Pebble
i found it was a bit morbit, but one of the entrants was listed as Dr Williamson
& then the same evening you go & watch most of his other cars get sold

Dear All:

4935 and 50133 were retained by the family for now. I suspect the T50 will be available, if it isn't already. You will recall that it was in the process of restoration over the summer of 2008 for the Pebble Beach Concours, so not quite ready for sale with the others.

The Atlantic, 57374 is widely rumored to be available for a jaw-dropping price.

The "other" Atalante, 57573 was sold in 2006 to UK collector, Roger Ainscough which will allow it to wear its distinctive UK registration "GPB 2" once again.

The T35C, so-called 4935, was a popular favorite with the younger Williamson's, so it will be kept and used by them again in the future.

CK

A continent away from the glitz of Monte Carlo, a private sale has just taken place which ends two years of speculation about the car’s fate and establishes a new all-time high in the classic car market. Considered by many to be the ultimate expression of the motor car as an art form, the Bugatti Type 57S Atlantic of the late 1930s puts even a Ferrari 250GTO in the shade. Styled by Ettore’s son and heir apparent Jean Bugatti, so rare and mysterious that historians cannot agree on how many were made or even survive (three and two is a best guess), most collectors would however agree that this grandfather of all supercars is about as good as it gets. Ralph Lauren famously has one, whilst the second Atlantic was owned for almost four decades by respected former American Bugatti Club president Dr Peter Williamson until his death in 2008, when David Gooding auctioned most of his collection to benefit medical charities. He’s now been involved in the private sale of the family’s Atlantic for an as-yet undisclosed sum thought to be in the region of $30,000,000. Stay tuned for news of where you'll be able to admire it shortly...

When Dr Williamson bought the Atlantic at Sothebys auction on 12th June 1971 in Los Angeles for $59,000, it was a logic-defying world record price. As the saying goes : “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose...”

[Source: Simon Kidston] See on this article : http://www.kidston.com/view_news.php?id=71

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

- Bugatti Coupe Sets $30 Million Record as Investors Buy Classics :
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid= ... mClLJTlV4E

- The World’s Most Expensive Car: Sold!
http://blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2010/ ... car-sold/#

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

May 6 (Bloomberg) -- A 1930s Bugatti has sold for about $30 million to become the world’s most expensive car -- with dealers predicting more records as billionaires look for alternatives to risky financial investments.

The Type 57SC Atlantic was bought in a private transaction for nearly as much as its asking price, dealers with knowledge of the matter said. The coupe had been owned by the New Hampshire-based neurologist Peter D. Williamson, a former president of the American Bugatti Club, who died in 2008.

“Interest rates are low and some people have made a lot of money over the last year,” said John Collins, of U.K.-based Ferrari dealers Talacrest 2000 AD Ltd. “They want to buy real assets that have a limited supply and that won’t go down in value. Modern art and classic cars are tracking each other at the moment.”

Wealthy individuals are increasingly looking at physical objects such as art and cars because stock markets remain turbulent, dealers said. A 1932 painting by Pablo Picasso sold at Christie’s International in New York for $106.5 million on May 4, setting a record for any artwork at auction.

The Williamson family’s sale was brokered by the Santa Monica-based classic auto specialists, Gooding & Company. Katie Hellweg, the company’s spokeswoman, said in an interview that she wouldn’t comment on the price or the buyer.

The 123-mph car was bought by the California-based collector Peter W. Mullin, who specializes in French coach- built classic cars, said Max Girardo, a London-based specialist with RM Auctions, who on May 1 held a 33.2 million-euro ($42.8 million) car sale in Monaco.

_________________
Vive la Marque !!

Press release by Gooding & Company :

GOODING & COMPANY MAKES HISTORY WITH THE PRIVATE SALE OF THE WORLD'S MOST VALUABLE CAR, THE 1936 BUGATTI TYPE 57SC ATLANTIC

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (May 5, 2010) - Gooding & Company, the internationally celebrated auction house that offers a wide range of services, including private and estate sales, is proud to announce that it has sold the unparalleled 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic to an undisclosed buyer. As the official broker for the Trust that formerly owned the Atlantic, Gooding & Company found a devoted connoisseur who will become the guardian of this treasured piece of automotive history.

"I am extremely pleased to have found the new buyer for the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, one of the world's most significant and valuable automobiles that has been in a private collection and rarely seen during the past four decades," says David Gooding, president and founder of Gooding & Company. "It has been a great pleasure to work with the Williamson Family and Trust in this important endeavor." Formerly the coveted pillar of the world renowned Williamson Bugatti Collection, the Atlantic was the 2003 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance best in Show car.

The Atlantic was an automobile derived from Bugatti's prototype Aerolithe Electron Coupé that caused a sensation when it was unveiled at the 1935 Paris Auto Salon. Bugatti later built just three Atlantics, each one different from the next, but this 1936 car (chassis #57374) is the first in the series and its historical significance, originality and restoration has been revered by enthusiasts throughout the world.

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

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

#57374 display at the Mullin Automotive Museum : http://www.autoblog.com/2010/08/04/worl ... -automoti/

Gallery : http://www.autoblog.com/photos/1936-bug ... l/#3232178

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

Autoblog report Part 2 : http://www.autoblog.com/2010/09/10/auto ... #continued

Gallery : http://www.autoblog.com/photos/1936-bug ... d/#3346991

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

I just had correspondence this week with an official at the Mullin museum.

He informed me that the museum did not buy the car; it is on loan from the buyer, whose identity is confidential.

I found some photos that I took while in Carmel by the Sea, California. I am there for much of August every year. The thing I found unusual about it was that the car was left in the middle of the street and anyone could see it, touch it....or damage it. No harm was done to the car during the many hours the car was there with so many people. So often we see someone standing guard over the prize. There was none that. Peter Mullen is a very trusting man and the people who attend the events in and around the Pebble Beach / Carmel area appear to be very polite.

At first I thought: How nice. But looking closer I understood: This is not the 30 million car, it is a replica!

_________________
Vive la Marque !!