A supercharged grand tourer that traded bevel gears for silence — and racing edge for road presence.
The Bugatti Type 57 is a grand tourer designed entirely by Jean Bugatti and built from 1934 to 1940. A total of 710 were made. It debuted as a supercharged model at the 1936 Paris Salon.
It was conceived as a grand tourer — not a racer, not a saloon, but a long-distance machine with presence.
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How it works
Its twin-cam 3.3 L engine used rear spur gears and fiber cam gears — a deliberate move away from the noisy front-bevel layout of earlier models.
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What it got right
Jean Bugatti designed four distinct bodies — Ventoux, Stelvio, Atalante, Atlantic — and the supercharged version was hailed as the finest Bugatti touring model.
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What it changed
It debuted at the 1936 Paris Salon as an entirely new design — not an evolution, not a stopgap, but Jean Bugatti’s first full statement.
Worth your time?
Yes. Drive the whole thing.
4/ 5
What works
It gets right the balance of touring comfort and restrained performance.
Its supercharged 3.3 L engine and bespoke body designs deliver presence without pretence.
What does not
It does not offer driver engagement through feedback or agility.
It does not isolate the driver from mechanical compromise — it accommodates it quietly.
Drive it if
It is for someone who values deliberate engineering over spectacle.
It is not for someone who conflates rarity with relevance or assumes silence implies sophistication.
Skip it if
It is not for someone who conflates rarity with relevance or assumes silence implies sophistication.
The written brief1 min read
What the car is and where it came from
The Bugatti Type 57 is a grand tourer designed entirely by Jean Bugatti and built from 1934 to 1940. A total of 710 were made. It debuted as a supercharged model at the 1936 Paris Salon.
How it works, in terms someone would actually use
It uses a 3.3 L straight-8 twin-cam engine with a rear-mounted train of spur gears and fiber camshaft gears for quiet operation. The bore and stroke are 72 mm by 100 mm. It is supercharged. It is a grand tourer, not a racer or a saloon.
What it gets right
It gets right the balance of touring comfort and restrained performance. Its supercharged 3.3 L engine and bespoke body designs deliver presence without pretence.
What it does not
It does not offer driver engagement through feedback or agility. It does not isolate the driver from mechanical compromise — it accommodates it quietly.
What it changed
It replaced Bugatti’s earlier single-cam touring engines with a twin-cam layout and rear-mounted gear drive, prioritising refinement over raw race-derived noise.
Who it is for, and who it is not
It is for someone who values deliberate engineering over spectacle. It is not for someone who conflates rarity with relevance or assumes silence implies sophistication.
Is it worth your time
Yes — if you care about how a touring car’s engineering choices shape its character, not its legend.
