Bugatti Type 35 History

Debuted at the Grand Prix de Lyon on 3 August 1924, the Type 35 introduced several technical novelties: cast aluminium eight-spoke wheels (which doubled as brake drums), a hollow front axle to reduce unsprung weight, and an evolution of Bugatti's 2.0-litre straight-eight overhead-cam engine producing approximately 90 PS in original form.

Over its active years the Type 35 family accumulated roughly 2,500 victories — at its peak averaging 14 race wins per week — and won the Targa Florio for five consecutive years from 1925 through 1929. The Type 35C (introduced 1926) added a Roots supercharger lifting output to around 128 bhp; the Type 35B used a larger 2.3-litre supercharged engine. A private entrant won the inaugural Monaco Grand Prix in 1929 in a Type 35.

The Type 35 is regularly cited by historians as the most successful competition car of all time based on sheer number of victories. Its combination of mechanical elegance, visual beauty (the engine was considered a display object), and outright speed made it the definitive expression of 1920s Grand Prix racing.