Bugatti Type 13 Classic Cars for Sale

The Bugatti Type 13 is a high-performance French vehicle first introduced in 1910. Its design served as the foundation upon which the Bugatti Types 15, 17, 22 and 23 were later built, and it is still held up as arguably the best car the company ever produced.

Production History of the Bugatti Type 13

The Bugatti Type 13 was the first car ever made by the Bugatti company. In fact, it was the reason for the company’s creation. Its founder, Ettore Bugatti, entered the car manufacturing business with the intention of improving on his prototype design, which he called the Bugatti Type 10. The prototype vehicle’s main innovation was its 2-valve cylinders, which was considered cutting-edge technology; the Bugatti Type 13 improved on this creation with a revolutionary 4-valve head. Things looked promising for the budding enterprise, but production was soon cut short by the onset of World War I. Europe’s increasing vulnerability made it a risky to assume that the Moselheim factory would come out of the conflict untouched. Fearing that his creations would be lost, the founder fled to Milan and took two Bugatti Type 13 cars with him. He also buried enough parts to make three more near his factory, and those same parts were later assembled into the Bugatti Type 13s which famously excelled on the racetrack. After the war, production resumed as usual.

Racing Legacy of the Bugatti Type 13

Aside from its interesting origins, the Bugatti Type 13 had a commendable track record on the racing circuit. An early version took second place in the 1911 Grand Prix at Le Mans, but its greatest successes were yet to come. Its compact, minimalist build was unusual for the time, and it could match few of its more conventional predecessors in speed; it did, however, hold a significant advantage in handling. It is this design strength that is credited for the Bugatti Type 13's first place finish in the 1920 Grand Prix at Le Mans. The Bugatti Type 13 also took first place in 1921’s Voiturette Grand Prix at Brescia, a race in which all of the top 4 spots were occupied by Bugatti vehicles. The company called attention to the excellence signaled by this win by including “Brescia” in the name of all subsequent 4-cylinder vehicles they produced. The most vaunted vehicle to bear this name, the Type 23 Brescia Tourer, was the first multi-valve road car ever to reach large-scale production.