1912 Bugatti 5-Liter Race Car

In 1910, aged 28, Ettore Bugatti resigned his position at the Deutz works in Cologne and moved to Alsace, renting an old dye works in Molsheim where he began making his own automobiles. He took with him a prototype car of 1208 cc which he had built in his basement workshop in Cologne and which was to become the first Pur Sang Bugatti, the Type 10. He also brought with him another much more powerful car, a five-liter overhead valve design with three valves per cylinder (two inlet, one exhaust) and chain drive, which he later confirmed to Colonel Giles of the Bugatti Owners Club he had started building in 1908.

In 1912 Bugatti drove his five-litre chain-driven car, equipped with an aerodynamic cowled two-seater bodywork — distinguishable by its pointed tail — in a race at Le Mans and later at the Mont Ventoux Hill Climb where he won his class and finished fourth overall. The history of this important car, number 471, was largely confirmed when Nigel...