Bugatti’s racing tradition is alive and well, and one of the most important parts of that history is beautifully preserved.
Only six Bugatti Type 59 sports race cars have been built, a two-seater with a 3.3-liter inline 8-cylinder engine with piano wire wheels and a supercharger. The model was used by Renেনে Dreyfus to finish third at the Monaco Grand Prix in April 1934, and other high places in the Grand Prix races around the world. After retirement, one of the Type 59s was converted into a sports car at the factory and remains the only Grand Prix car to complete the process.
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Bodywork has been redesigned to remove the supercharger and drive the road, making the Bugatti Type 59 a vehicle for sports roads and tracks. It continues to build a racing legacy until it is sold to a regular Bugatti client: King Leopold III of Belgium. For the king, the car was painted blue to black with a yellow stripe, and World War II unrest kept the car in storage, and King Leopold III and his family were exiled. In 1959, the former King and his family moved to Type 59 Sports, until it was sold to a Belgian collector in 1967, where it would be kept for 20 years until an American Bugatti was sold to enthusiasts. More than 80 years later, the car is still undiscovered and remains in its original race-worn condition with pierced leather and patented paintwork, but with powerful technology, a beautiful tribute to Bugatti’s racing history.
Source: Bugatti