1937 Bugatti 57C Van Vooren Cabriolet

The Van Vooren coachwork delivered on Chassis number 57430 was removed and replaced with Stelvio coachwork. The original Van Vooren coachwork was subsequently installed on Chassis number 57742, delivered by the factory to St. Martin and later owned by Jean Serre of France as indicated by a Certificat d Immatriculation dated April 1, 1971. (see attached original certificate) Prior to World War II and before Serre’s ownership it is believed that a factory supercharger was installed on 57742. In 1999, 57742 with the two seater Van Vooren coachwork was sold in France by Jean Serre through agent Toby Ross to Charles Morse of California, representing Boulevard Motor Car Company, (See agreement dated February 4 th , 2000 between Toby Ross and Boulevard Motor Company) A frame up three year restoration was undertaken by Competition Motors Ltd. on behalf of its American customer. (See American Bugatti Register 2002, with handwritten amendment) Following the completion of the restoration, 57742 was reconveyed to Competition Motors Ltd. and later extensively photographed for a national advertising campaign of Ralph Lauren’s Fall Col lection of men’s clothing (see photo attached) (1,2,4) Ettore Bugatti was born in Milan, Italy in 1881, the eldest son of Carlo Bugatti. Ettore’s father, Carlo Bugatti, was a known painter, furniture designer and b uilder, silversmith and artisan from an area well known for it’s cultural, artistic, science and engineering pursuits. While in his teens, Ettore Bugatti first attended art school, but left after a short time frustrated by his brother Rembrandt’s greater artistic skills. Ettore Bugatti was drawn by his interest in mechanical engineering, internal combustion engines and early motorized tricycle construction. He apprenticed for a while at the manufacturing company of Principi and Stucci in Milan and assisted in building motorized tricycles. Shortly after his association with the firm, he began improving on the motorized tricycle fitting a second engine and participating in early motor vehicle racing. His interest and unusual skill in developing and improving motorized vehicles quickly drew attention in his native city of Milan and shortly thereafter was employed while still at his minority successively by Dietrich, then Deutz at Cologne and by other early automotive manufacturers as a mechanical engineer and designer of many vehicles and engines. By 1910, Ettore Bugatti established himself with a reputation for building small, fast and reliable motor vehicles in the Alsaitian village of Molsheim in an old die works. One of Bugatti’s earliest design successes was the “Bebe” for the Peugot Motor Car Company. Bugatti was soon in production of his first commercially successful vehicles by 1912, 4-cylinder, 8-valve automobiles. Bugatti built 8-valve units prior to the outbreak of World War I, which temporarily closed his factory at Molsheim, then part of the German Federation. Bugatti fled to Milan, but returned after the war and continued the production of 8-valve passenger, sports and race cars. By the late teens, the so called 4-cylinder, 8-valve engine had been modified to a 4-cylinder, 16- valve engine. History of the Bugatti Type 57 Series