1926 Bugatti type 35

It is very pretty - and seems to be a rather dark shade of blue for a Bugatti.

Are you sure it wasn't made in Argentina? - (not much "patina", I mean)

 

Looks very nice, quite like one I saw at auction a few years ago, described as "a replica with more original parts than most real Bugattis".

 

I don't think it's an original chassis.

I think Pur Sang from Argentina is very possible.

Very few 35's had dual quasi-Brooklands with red leather.

Anything that dark blue with a big tail number 3 should be trackable.

--Matt

P.S. I want a supercharged 2.3 Pur Sang very much!

 

Just as a side thought - although I understand the "purists" who do not like the Pur Sang recreations very much:

I would just like to say that I very much appreciate the enormous effort and enthusiasm they have made to keep this very important car alive.

I too would very much like to own one someday.

 

beautiful

 

I still think the type 35 was the prettiest racing car ever made.

 

The pristine condition of all elements point to it being a replica, Pur Sang or otherwise.

 

For me it's a 35 PS Argentina
The front cover 3-2-3-2-3 Typically PS Argentina
The Hood is one of compressed car, without the hole. And "Louves" reversed in center...
The steering box mounted backward has a compressed car ...
Sorry for my English....

 

Gorgeous-Beautiful-Gorgeous!!

 

Chassis #(plate/ crankcase arm): engine#( upper/ lower crankcase/ cambox ); transmission#: rear axle#; frame#: front axle#;... If you have all these and they make sense with each other then you are on the way to the "real deal". : )

 

As Gilles and others pointed out earlier, there are too many clues that say it came from Argentina and not Molsheim.

I would also add that the tach drive looks like the Pur Sang variety with a modern belt. (But I bet that it's an electric tach.)

A picture of the dash would cinch it.

Matt

 

apologies for the hijack, but if you have any more pics of the white 959 in the background please post in the Porsche picture thread

 

Inner body panel way too shineyto be old ... Not a deal breaker as many if not most gp bugs have been rebodied. Also the oil and fuel pressure gauges appear new but the clock and tach seem unrestored (actually the tach face seems a bit odd ) nice car tho....

 

Steering wheel reworded: footwell side castings looks like new castings. If a real car then a lot of club spares were used in the restoration. Also the presence of a chassis plate with a 4 digit chassis number isn't an absolute. Nice car tho...

 

It's Pur Sang.

They use original Jaeger clocks that the company is collecting on an ongoing basis. The other gauges are new, and the tach is an electric drive with the fake belt drive for looks. The layout, including fuel and oil pumps, is exactly what Pur Sang is making.

But I agree that it's a very nice car.

Just not a nice man telling people that it is what it isn't.

Matt

 

The Bugatti world is different from the Ferrari world. And I'm happier for it. They might allow a Pur Sang in competition. I really don't know.

I'd bet good money that its a Pur Sang.

The belt drive to the tach "works" in that the belt spins the pulley. But the drive of the needle itself is electric.

I don't mean to be antagonistic. It just isn't an old Molsheim car with history.

Matt

 

Hate to break it to all of you but the car is an original. I know the car and it has GREAT history. It is one of 3 cars built to run the Targa Florio and did so in 1926, 27 and 28. It is owned by a friend of mine. If you look at the left side of the cockpit you will notice what appears to be a lever. It is, in fact a lever to pump additional oil to the engine while on the go. It is a feature of the TF cars built. The car has had a nut and bolt resto a few years ago and the owner is a fanatic about the car being spotless hence the shiney inner panels and the "brand new" look.

BTW it sits right next to his Maserati A6CGS when it's at home. A real nice pair of cars.

 

Actually most t35's had the transfer pump and oil tank under the mechanics seat it was a throwback to times of riding mechanicians.. My 1930 35b had one despite being essentially a single seater.. The steering box is set up for a supercharceg engine so it might be running the strange carbs in lieu of the blower. It's a nice car don't get me wrong but it is not in totally original spec ( as I recall the long distance cars had a spare on both sides)I'll look up the chassis/ engine # so everybody will be happy.

 

The manual oil pump, along with a manual fuel pump, is a feature of every Pur Sang car also. They are backed up by more modern electric counter parts. The starter handle works too even though there's an electric starter.

Thank you. I'll be curious to hear the car's history. And you're right about the spare and the carbs and the steering box. It all points away from a real car.

Matt