The Bite Magazine - Autumn/Winter 2019 - Issue 26

bite cars E ighty years ago, the elegant, sporty, and luxurious Type 57 SC Atlantic was not just regarded as one of Bugatti’s legends as it is today but perhaps the greatest. Built between 1936 and 1938, only four models were created. Today, three of these extraordinary and most valuable coupés are still in existence. According to the French car brand, the automotive world has been search- ing for the fourth Atlantic for over eight decades since it dis- appeared travelling from Molsheim to Bordeaux, in France in 1940. The first model, 57-374 was built in 1936 and sold to Brit- ish banker Victor Rothschild. The second, 57-453 was kept by Jean Bugatti, designer and eldest son of founder Ettore Bugatti, which he named ‘La Voiture Noire’ meaning ‘The Black Car’. The third, 57-591, now owned by fashion design- er Ralph Lauren, previously belonged to English barrister R. B. Pope, and the last, 57-473 was delivered in October 1936 to Frenchman Jacques Holzschuh. “The Atlantic is among the icons in Bugatti’s long tradition. In terms of elegance, quality, and performance, the coupé was unique in its time and is still unique today. A luxury super sports car. For us, it is both an inspiration and a com- mitment,” said Stephan Winkelman, President of Bugatti. "Our current hyper sports cars Chiron, Chiron Sport, and Divo continue this tradition in the modern age - in line with the spirit of Bugatti.” Since it was founded 110 years ago, Bugatti has possessed a pioneering spirit, a passion for perfection and the desire to continually redefine its limits. Thanks to Jean, the creation of the Type 57 SC Atlantic stood for pure elegance and sophis- tication. Since the all-black Atlantic went missing during the Second World War, Bugatti decided to pay homage to this model by bringing the speed, technology, luxury, and aes- thetics of an icon into a new era with the La Voiture Noire. This model may be the replacement for the missing piece in the puzzle but it is deemed more than a modern reinter- pretation of the ghost of the Gran Turismo. It is a tribute to Bugatti’s motoring history, the manifesto of their aesthetic and a piece of automotive haute couture. It is also seen as every inch the equal of Jean Bugatti’s masterpiece as well as the perfect manifestation of the car brand’s cornerstones: dynamic, luxury and elegance. What Drives This Power Model? While the Atlantic coupé was powered by a 3.3-litre straight- eight two-value engine with up to 200 PS and a top speed above 124 mph, today’s La Voiture Noire packs the same 8.0-litre quad-turbocharged W16 engine as the Chiron and

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NjEzMzI=