Bugatti Celebrates 100th Anniversary Of Historic Victory With Classic Car Event In Italy

Bugatti celebrated the 100th anniversary of one of its greatest victories ever this week with a special two-day event in Italy featuring Type 13s from all over the world.

The event, held along the banks of Lake Garda, began and ended in Brescia each day with the help of the Bugatti Club Italia. Together, the cars visited some of the sites from the historic race that inspired the event.

The race, the 1921 Gran Premio delle Vetturette, sent small, light race cars around 60 laps of a 17.3 km (10.7 miles) loop between the cities of Montichiari and Brescia. After more than 1,000 km (642 miles), Type 13s finished in first, second, third, and fourth place and helped contribute to the legend of Bugatti as a pre-war powerhouse.

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For 1921, the Bugatti Type 13’s four-cylinder, four-valve engine had its displacement increased to 1.45-liters and made use of ball bearings in the crankshaft to make it run more smoothly. They also increased the compression ratio and the carburetor flow rate.

Capable of revving up to 4,500 rpm, the engine developed 39 hp (40 PS/29 kW) but would eventually make up to 49 hp (50 PS/36 kW). Thanks to lightweight wire wheels, as opposed to the heavy wooden ones that preceded it, the Type 13 weighed just 490 kg (1,080 lbs). That meant that the “voiturette” could achieve a top speed of 150 km/h (93 mph).

Drivers reported that the car was powerful, fast, and most importantly, agile. It was sinewy, like a thoroughbred, which led to the “pur sang” moniker that the brand hangs onto to this day.

The race was such a roaring success for the brand that every following four-valve vehicle bore the name “Brescia” to honor the Type 13’s dominant success. The race also preceded a period of great success for Bugatti, whose followups, the Type 15, Type 17, and Type 23 all used four-valve engines. It also preceded the Type 35, considered by many the most successful race car of all time.

As the first small open-top sports car for the brand, the Type 13 “Brescia” marked a turning point for Bugatti, heralding the end of big, heavy race cars, in favor of lightweight and agile racers.