Rare Bugatti Royale goes to the Classic Motor Show
Days have gone so fast that I haven’t quite noticed searching for something as great as these online husky floor mats has consumed much of my time. I almost forgot that the Classic Motor Show has taken place last Friday (November 9) at the NEC. The last thing I knew was that the Donington Collection’s Bugatti Royale will be displayed as a star attraction in the UK’s biggest and best classic motoring extravaganza.
The Bugatti Royale in the picture above is one of the only six original cars in the world. It took 11,000 hours and costs £1.6 million to be build. All the original cars were sold at a price ranging from £5.5 million to about $17 million.
Though the prototype has been destroyed in an accident in 1931, all the six production Royales still exist. Each of them has different body, with some had been rebodied several times. The Royale has been built between 1929 and 1933 and only three of them were sold to external customers with the rest kept inside the company.
Along with the big price is a big space. The Bugatti Royale has an overall length of 21 feet and wide of 7 feet with a wheelbase measuring 169.3 inches. It is powered by a 12.7 liter eight cylinder engine and weighs more than 7,000 pounds.
According to Classic & Sports Car’s publishing director Stuart Forrest prior to the event last week, “The car is so big that it requires a specialist moving company even to bring it into the hall… We’ve driven the car in our latest issue, and we were delighted to have the opportunity to work with the Donington Collection, where the car can normally be seen, to display it on our stand at the Classic Motor Show. It is an incredible car to see, and there are so few of these vehicles in the world that the chance to do so at the NEC this weekend is not to be missed.” Unfortunately, I really did miss it. I will just then wish for another show that will feature it again.
