Bugatti Type 13

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One of the first cars by Bugatti

title: "Bugatti Type 13" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["bugatti-automobiles", "first-car-made-by-manufacturer", "grand-prix-cars", "1910s-cars", "1920s-cars"] description: "One of the first cars by Bugatti" topic_path: "general/bugatti-automobiles" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bugatti_Type_13" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary One of the first cars by Bugatti ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox car"]

Field	Value
name	Bugatti Type 10
image	Bugatti Type 10 pilotée par Ettore Bugatti.jpg
predecessor	Bugatti Type 9C-A
manufacturer	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti
aka	Bugatti Type 10 Pur Sang
production	1907–1909
assembly	Germany: Molsheim, Alsace
designer	Ettore Bugatti
body_style	Open Wheeler
platform	Bugatti Type 9C-A
related	Bugatti Type 9
layout	Front Engine, RWD
engine	1131 cc Deutz-Bugatti derived I4
powerout	10 PS
17 Nm
transmission	4-Speed Manual
weight	365 kg
::

The Bugatti Type 13 was the first car produced solely with the "Bugatti" name plate. Production of the Type 13, and later Types 15, 17, 22, and 23, began with the company's founding in 1910 and lasted through 1920, with 435 examples produced. Most road cars used an eight-valve engine, though five Type 13 racers had 16-valve heads, some of the first ever produced. The road cars became known as pur-sang ("thoroughbred") in keeping with Ettore Bugatti's feelings for his designs.

The car was brought back after World War I with a multivalve engine to bring fame to the marque at Brescia. The production Brescia tourer also brought in much-needed cash.

Type 10 ==

| name = Bugatti Type 10 | image = Bugatti Type 10 pilotée par Ettore Bugatti.jpg | predecessor = Bugatti Type 9C-A | manufacturer = Automobiles Ettore Bugatti | aka = Bugatti Type 10 Pur Sang | production = 1907–1909 | assembly = Germany: Molsheim, Alsace | designer = Ettore Bugatti | body_style = Open Wheeler | platform = Bugatti Type 9C-A | related = Bugatti Type 9 | layout = Front Engine, RWD | engine = 1131 cc Deutz-Bugatti derived I4 | powerout = 10 PS 17 Nm | transmission = 4-Speed Manual | weight = 365 kg The Bugatti automobile was prototyped as the Type 10 in Ettore Bugatti's basement in 1908 and 1909 while he was chief engineer at Deutz Gasmotoren Fabrik in Cologne, Germany, as a modified version of the Bugatti Type 9C-A, but significantly destroked.

The Type 10 used a monobloc straight-four engine of Ettore's own design. It was an overhead-cam unit with two valves per cylinder, which was highly advanced for the time. A very-undersquare design, it had a 60 mm bore and 100 mm stroke for a total of 1.1 L (1131 cc/69 in3). This was attached to an open roadster body with solid axles front and rear. Leaf springs suspended the front with no suspension at all in the rear. Cables operated rear drum brakes.

On ending his contract with Deutz, Ettore loaded his family into the Type 10 and headed to the Alsace region, then still part of the German Empire, looking for a factory to begin producing cars of his own. After World War I, Alsace became a part of France again, and with it Bugatti.

The car was preserved and nicknamed "la baignoire" ("the bathtub") by the staff at Molsheim in later years due to its shape. Ettore restored it in 1939 and repainted it an orange-red color, earning it a new nickname, "le homard" ("the lobster"). It was moved to Bordeaux for the duration of World War II and remained there for decades before falling into private ownership. Today, the car is in California in the hands of a private collector.

Type 13

| name = Bugatti Type 13 Bugatti Type 13 Brescia | image = Bugatti Typ 13 Brescia Sport-Racing 1922.jpg | wheelbase = 2590 mm | manufacturer = Automobiles Ettore Bugatti | production = 1910–1911 1920–1926 | length = 3100 mm | width = 1100 mm | height = 1200 mm | assembly = France: Molsheim, Alsace | designer = Ettore Bugatti | model_years = 1911 1921–1926 | body_style = Roadster | layout = Front Engine, RWD | engine = 1368-1453 cc I4 | powerout = 16-30 PS @ 3,500-4,000 rpm 16-45 Nm @ 2,000-3,000 rpm | transmission = 4-speed manual | weight = 1213 lb Upon starting operations at his new factory in Molsheim, Bugatti refined his light shaft-driven car into the Type 13 racer. This included boring the engine out to 65 mm for a total of 1.368 L. A major advance was the four-valve head Bugatti designed — one of the first of its type ever conceived. Power output with dual Zenith carburetters reached 30 hp-metric at 4500 rpm, more than adequate for the 660-lb (300-kg) car. Leaf springs were now fitted all around, and the car rode on a roughly 2-m (80-in) wheelbase. Although having the appearance of a toy, the Bugatti Type 13 was successfully raced. It was seen at hill climbs as early as 1910 looking rather out of place compared to the bulky and brutish competition. What the Type 13 lacked in power, it made up in handling, steering, and braking. These important elements were retained throughout all future Bugatti designs. Top speed was at 125 km/h.

The new company produced five examples in 1910, and entered the French Grand Prix at Le Mans in 1911. The tiny Bugatti looked out of place at the race, but calmly took second place after seven hours of racing.

World War I caused production to halt in the disputed region. Ettore took two completed Type 13 cars with him to Milan for the duration of the war, leaving the parts for three more buried near the factory. After the war, Bugatti returned, unearthed the parts, and prepared five Type 13s for racing.

Post World War I, A Grand Prix for Voiturettes at Le Mans was the only French event of 1920, and Bugatti entered the two completed cars from Milan and one more from the remaining parts. Ettore's illegal act of placing a hand on the radiator cap during the race brought disqualification to the leading car, however.

The Type 13 was unbeatable. Bugatti's cars finished in the top four places at the Brescia Grand Prix in 1921, and orders poured in. Capitalizing on this victory, all subsequent four-valve Bugatti models bore the Brescia moniker.

These were the only Bugatti models to locate the carburetor on the left side of the engine and the exhaust on the right. In 1921, the bore was increased to 68 mm, which gave an overall displacement of 1.453 L. Front-wheel brakes were added in 1926.

Type 15

| name = Bugatti Type 15 | image = BJ2305 Bugatti Type 15.jpg | wheelbase = 2400 mm | manufacturer = Automobiles Ettore Bugatti | production = 1910–1913 | length = 3800 mm | width = 1350 mm | height = 1220 mm | assembly = Germany: Molsheim, Alsace | designer = Ettore Bugatti | body_style = Roadster | layout = Front Engine, RWD | engine = 1368 cc I4 | powerout = 18 PS @ 3,000 rpm 18 Nm @ 2,100 rpm | transmission = 4-speed Manual | weight = 1433 lb The Type 15 was a version of the Type 13 with a longer, 2400-mm (94.5-in), wheelbase. It had a six-sided radiator in front and semielliptical rear leaf springs. A variety of dates of production have been suggested, but none before 1910 and none later than 1914.

Type 17

| name = Bugatti Type 17 | image = Bugatti Torpedo Type 17 1914 Mulhouse FRA 001.JPG | wheelbase = 2550 mm | manufacturer = Automobiles Ettore Bugatti | production = 1910–1919 | length = 3250 mm | width = 1580 mm | height = 1200 mm | assembly = Molsheim, France | designer = Ettore Bugatti | body_style = Roadster | layout = Front Engine, RWD | engine = {{ubl | 1327 cc I4 | 1368 cc I4 | powerout = 18-20 PS @ 3,000 rpm 18 Nm @ 2,100 rpm | transmission = 4-speed Manual | weight = 1653 lb Another Type 13-based version, the Type 17, was also produced alongside the 15. This used a longer yet, 2550 mm wheelbase. It shared its hexagonal radiator and rear springs with the Type 15. As with the 13 and 15, the engine was bored out by 1 mm in 1912, increasing displacement from 1327 to along with two additional horsepower.

Type 22

Type 23

| name = Bugatti Type 23 | image = Bugatti Type 23 Brescia (52746740657).jpg | wheelbase = 2550 mm | manufacturer = Automobiles Ettore Bugatti | production = 1920-1926 | length = 4300 mm | width = 1300 mm | height = 1160 mm | assembly = Molsheim, France | designer = Ettore Bugatti | body_style = Roadster | layout = Front Engine, RWD | engine = {{ubl | 1368 cc I4 | 1453 cc I4 | 1496 cc I4 | powerout = 20 -
67 Nm | transmission = 4-speed Manual | weight = 1062 lb This updated version of the Type 17 was built from 1913 as the Type 23. It also had the oval radiator of the Type 22. Post World War 1, Bugatti capitalized on the racing success of the Type 13 "Brescia" with the full-production postwar Brescia Tourer. From 1914 or thereabouts, the 17 also received the multivalve Brescia engine. 2,000 examples of this engine type were built from 1920 through 1926, making it the first full-production multivalve car ever made.

The engine was initially the same 66 mm bore, 1.4-litre, two-valve unit as in the earlier models. Towards the end of 1920, the bore was increased to 68 mm, becoming a 1.45-litre engine. A year or two later, displacement went up to a full 1.5 litres, thanks to a bore expanded yet again, to 69 mm.

References

[[Georgano, G.N.]] ''Cars: Early and Vintage, 1886-1930''. (London: Grange-Universal, 1985)
(2016-04-06). "1921 Bugatti Type 13 {{!}} Bugatti".
"Bugatti Type 17 specs, performance data".

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