<< Prev Page 2 of 2 Towards the end of 1929, the first Type 46 was shown at the important Paris and London shows. With its 5.3 litre engine and 3.5 metre wheelbase it was by no means a small car. It was nevertheless smaller and not nearly as expensive as the Royale. The Type 46 was well received by the motoring journalists and whereas the Royale proved impossible to market, orders for the new luxurious Bugatti quickly piled up. Bugatti delivered most of the cars as rolling chassis for prominent coach-builders to body. Due to its considerable length, the Type 46 could accommodate a wide variety of bodies, ranging from stately saloons to sporty coupes and cabriolets.
Ettore Bugatti's son, Jean, emerged in this period as a talented designer. The aerodynamic coupes he styled featured steeply raked windscreens and notchback (Semi-Profilée) and hunchback (Superprofilée) rear ends. Almost all Bugatti built bodies, however, were of a more conventional design. In 1931 the Type 46 was expanded with the Sport or S model. This featured a supercharged version of the 5.3 litre engine. Mated to two Zenith carburettors, this Roots-type supercharger provided 20 bhp increase in power. This was not enough to convince many customers to pay the premium as only around 20 Type 46S Bugattis were produced.
Around the same time, the Type 50 joined the Bugatti line-up. This used a virtually identical chassis but was powered by an all-new twin-cam eight cylinder engine. Available only in supercharged form, this five-litre unit produced a much more impressive 200 bhp. Both the Type 46 and Type 50 were available until 1936, when they were superseded by the Type 57. Even though it was twice as expensive as a similar Delage, Bugatti managed to sell over 400 examples of the 'Petite Royale'. Sadly today only very few examples of what was Ettore's favourite Bugatti have survived. << Prev Page 2 of 2
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Type 46 Gaston Grummer Faux Cabriolet
Towards the end of 1929, the first Type 46 was shown at the important Paris and London shows. With its 5.3 litre engine and 3.5 metre wheelbase it was by no means a small car. It was nevertheless smaller and not nearly as expensive as the Royale. The Type 46 was well received by the motoring journalists and whereas the Royale proved impossible to market, orders for the new luxurious Bugatti quickly piled up. Bugatti delivered most of the cars as rolling chassis for prominent coach-builders to body. Due to its considerable length, the Type 46 could accommodate a wide variety of bodies, ranging from stately saloons to sporty coupes and cabriolets.