BUGATTI, Campogallano, Italy, 1989-1995


The legendary French company "Bugatti" at all times had many followers. Some tried to revive this famous brand. The Italian company of the same name was most fortunate, although all its efforts in the end ended in complete collapse.
In a fit of nostalgia for the disappeared brand, the Italian engineer and designer Paolo Stanzani in 1988 made great efforts to take advantage of the big name Bugatti and to launch serial production of top-class sports cars. He bought from the heirs of "Bugatti" the right to use the previous emblem. In 1989, in the town of Campogallano near Modena, construction began on a small $ 40 million Bugatti plant capable of producing 150-200 cars annually. At the same time, the bodybuilder Ital Design developed and manufactured a prototype of the future Bugatti under the index 90. In September 1991, the official presentation of the promising products of the new plant took place - the 2-seater sports car of the highest class "Bugatti EB-110", the production of which began next year.
The new "Bugatti" possessed technical excellence, outstanding design and impeccable shape. At its creation, modern aerospace technologies and the experience of creating Formula 1 cars were widely used. The low streamlined body with a height of only 1125 mm, developed by the designer Marcello Gandini, had an aerodynamic drag coefficient of only 0.29. A squat silhouette, a massive front with narrow headlight slits and a horseshoe-shaped neckline, a short back and 18-inch aluminum wheels should remind of Bugatti's previous unusual creations. This feature was emphasized by the side double doors. A V-shaped 12-cylinder engine with a displacement of 3.5 liters with two overhead camshafts for each cylinder row, five valves per cylinder and two turbochargers was located in the central part of the chassis. At first, the company stated that its power would be 650 or 700 hp, but for production models it was limited to 560-610 hp. Air for cooling the engine was supplied through the wide air intakes in the upper part of the rear wings. To access the units, the entire rear of the body leaned up. The engine through a 6-speed gearbox drives all wheels equipped with an independent active suspension with electronic stiffness adjustment. All disc brakes were equipped with anti-lock braking system. The front brakes were equipped with four hydraulic cylinders. The car frame was spatial from a combination of aluminum alloys and carbon fiber. The steering did not have a hydraulic booster, which, however, did not impede the driving of a machine that weighed 1,620 kg and was capable of developing a maximum speed of 350 km / h. From zero to 100 km / h, the Bugatti accelerated in just 3.26 s, and fuel consumption was not so high - 13-14 liters per 100 km when driving at an average speed of 120 km / h. The main disadvantage of the car was its exorbitant cost - up to 400 thousand dollars.
Under the designation "EB-110GT", the standard 2-door 2-seater "Bugatti" was produced in small batches for individual orders since 1992, and from the next year the modification "EB-110SS" with a 611-horsepower engine was offered. In 1993, they produced the only EV-112 model with a 4-door 4-seater body.
The high price of Bugatti did not contribute to market success. Nevertheless, in October 1993, the company decided to expand its business and bought a majority stake in the British company Lotus from General Motors. It was a rather bold attempt to create a mini-concern for the production of top-class sports cars. In March 1995, the Italian industrial giant Benetton, for £ 36,000,000, in turn bought Lotus from Bugatti. The ambitious project of revitalizing the legendary brand was over. In September of that year, the Italian company Bugatti, which suffered a loss of $ 130,000,000, declared bankruptcy.

Hits: 220