Bugatti Celebrates 100-Year Anniversary Of The Type 13, The First Supercar - HotCars

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Mention Bugatti to most auto enthusiasts these days, and you'll bring up visions of multi-million dollar, ultra-fast hypercars like the Bugatti Chiron or Bugatti Veyron. But the Bugatti story goes back much further. One hundred years further, in fact, as the celebrated automaker now marks an important anniversary for its Type 13 race car. In 1921, Bugatti Type 13 racers won the top four places in Italy's Brescia Grand Prix, thereby validating Ettore Bugatti's innovative design for fast cars. After that, the Type 13 was known as the Brescia and arguably became the world's first supercar.

World War One Delays Bugatti's Race Car Plans

Bugatti Celebrates 100-Year Anniversary Of The Type 13 Brescia, The First Supercar — motorvalley.it

Bugatti believed that the key to a successful race car was lighter weight and precise engineering instead of the large and imprecise machines that ruled during the beginning of the sport. With this concept in mind, he began work on the Type 13 in 1910 only to have his plans delayed by World War One.

Four-Valve Engine Technology

Bugatti's work continued in 1919 as the vehicle's modest weight and chassis size were supported by a 1,368 cc engine with modern four-valve technology--one of the first powerplants to incorporate this feature. Other enhancements include using an alloy in crankshaft bearings and pistons, a fuel pump, and a spraying oil pump to prolong component longevity. The Type 13 Brescia even had a four-speed manual transmission.

Continuous improvements to the car, included a larger engine, increased engine compression, and dual magnetic ignition, all made the car faster, more reliable and quite sought after. The Type 13 responded rapidly to throttle inputs and maneuvered around corners easily due to Bugatti's exacting steering technology. Agility benefited from lightweight wire-spoke wheels rather than the heavy wooden wheels used with most other racers of the day.

"What already set Bugatti cars apart 100 years ago was high material performance and quality, as well as careful workmanship," explains Luigi Galli, Specialist Heritage & Certification at Bugatti. "This made the legendary Type 13 not only the fastest, but also the most agile and reliable car on the Grand Prix racetracks of the last century, and caused a sensation from its very first appearances at the beginning of the 1920s. "

Origins Of Historic Type 35 Began With The Type 13

The company reports that around 2,000 Type 13 Brescias were built until 1926, which helped the automaker flourish and use this technology in subsequent race cars, including Types 17, 22, and 23. According to the Bugatti company, the successor Type 35, which was first assembled in 1925, became one of the most successful race cars of all time, chalking up more than 2,000 victories.

Source: Bugatti

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Dave Goldberg (94 Articles Published)

Dave Goldberg is a lifelong auto enthusiast. While he leans towards European wheels for his personal driving, Dave gets excited about everything from Acura to Zagato.