In bringing you images yesterday of a pair of classic Type 57s from the Techno Classica in Essen, Germany, we asserted that no classic car show (in Europe especially) would be complete without some vintage Bugattis. Well, neither would a top-tier car auction. So following the array of Ferrari supercars that RM Auctions has on the docket for its upcoming sale at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, we bring you a sextet of classic Bugattis which the Canadian auction house has lined up for the same sale.
All six examples consigned to RM Auctions for the lakeside show hail from Bugatti's golden age in the 1920s and 30s, long before the EB110 and the Veyron brought the marque out of the history books and into the modern age. First up we have a Type 46 Coupé Superprofilée from 1930, chassis #46208 designed by Ettore's son Jean Bugatti and pictured here in black and yellow, expected to go for almost a million euros. It's joined by a 1937 Type 57 Ventoux - similar to the one Bugatti is displaying in Essen - chassis 57524 (pictured in black) features unique fastback coachwork, fully restored in 2006, and is estimated to fetch as much as €400,000 at auction.
A 1929 Type 40 (chassis #40845 in red and black) is one of only 39 made and is expected to go for upwards of €250,000. A 1927 Type 37 Grand Prix racer (chassis #37254 in black) is tipped to sell for nearly a million euros. There's also a 1924 Type 30 Torpedo (chassis #4289) with coachwork by Lavocat et Marsaud, and a 1929 Type 44 Grand Sport convertible (chassis #441008 in dark blue). In short, if you're looking to pick up a classic Bugatti and have six figures or more to spend, Lake Como is the place to be on May 25. (Photos by Tom Wood, Darin Schnabel and Bernard Caconne, courtesy of RM Auctions.)