BUGATTI 41 ROYALE – year 1931

Manufacturer: Automobiles Ettore Bugatti, Molsheim, France.

The constructor of this "royal” car, Ettore Bugatti, he had long thought of a large creature, fast, quiet, powerful, a luxury model with elegant lines and mechanics. He believed, that he is able to create such a wonderful work. Thanks to the successes in racing, his economic situation was so good, that it made it possible for him to carry out this intention. The last stimulus for this was apparently the remark of an Englishwoman, which stated, it is true that Bugatti makes the fastest cars, but the best car you can only have from a Rolls-Royce.

Initially, Bugatti planned to produce approx 25 Royale cars with displacement engines 15 liters. For various reasons, he only released them 7. Model prototype, which he was working on 4 patch, appeared in 1928 r. A car with an engine capacity 14726 cm3 and wheelbase 4,57 m has become a surprise of the year.

The following models had the engine capacity lowered to 12763 cm3, and the wheelbase shortened to 4,3 m.

The 8-cylinder engine is based on a 16-cylinder Bugatti aircraft engine from the First World War. He had almost 1,5 m in length and weight 380 kg. The crankshaft itself weighed 137,5 kg. The overhead valve engine with OHC timing developed power 220 kW (300 KM) by 1700 RPM. The first gear was used only for starting and overcoming the steepest slopes. The second, due to the extraordinary flexibility of the engine, could be used from zero speed to 1 50 km/h. Depending on the type of bodywork, the maximum speed varied approx 200 km/h.

Indeed, this passenger car is hard to imagine, length almost 6,5 m, whose mask measures 2 m, and the tires have a diameter 970 mm. Such a wheelbase - 4310 mm has not had any other car so far. The front axle deserved special attention, made of one piece of stainless steel, hollow steel. At its ends, leaf springs were inserted and wedged.

Of the six Royale cars that have survived to this day, two are located in France, the other four in America.