1928 BUGATTI 44 FAUX CABRIOLET PAR LABOURDETTE

French title
Chassis n° 44342
Engine n° 76

• Transparent history
• Exceptionally well preserved
• High quality mechanical restoration

This Bugatti 44 Faux Cabriolet Labourdette is remarkable for its history and patina. What is even more extraordinary is that it was tucked away less than 50 km from Bruno Lafourcade’s garage while he was looking as far afield as New Zealand for a Type 44. "A long time ago, Bruno and I owned a cabriolet 44 Vanvooren together. I discovered the parts of the car in 1961," remembers François Chevalier. "This car stayed in Bruno’s mind as we had never got it going."
Many years later at Rondoni’s, François Chevalier came across a very rusty engine block from a Type 44. Laurent Rondoni told him that he’d had it for several years and that it used to belong to someone who had owned the Bugatti for ages. Rondoni was not familiar with the car however. On further investigation, Bruno Lafourcade and François Chevalier discovered the story of a Mr. Gros from Cavaillon. "It was the very same person that Antoine Raffaëlli had courted for two years in order to buy the ex-Trintignant Bugatti 51 with the Type 35 engine ! At the time, focused on the negotiations for the 51/35, Antoine must not have noticed the 44." explains François Chevalier. Mr. Gros’s daughter later inherited the 44 and her husband tried in vain to repair the engine.
In 2010, Bruno and François made contact with them. They discovered an incredibly original, unrestored car. Fearing thieves, the radiator had been taken out but the car was complete. "The most incredible thing was that this car had also been sold by Trintignant senior in 1934 !" continued François Chevalier. We can also add that this Type 44 left the factory in Molsheim around 1930 not to be sold for another three or four years, due to the 1929 financial crisis.
In October 2010, after lengthy negotiations, Bruno Lafourcade finalised the deal with the heirs, right from under the feet of many international collectors. The 44 was taken for restoration and "everything that you see has remained exactly the same. And everything that you can’t see has been restored !" explains François Chevalier. The mechanical work was carried out at the workshop of Laurent Rondoni, Ventoux Moteurs Ingénierie, who rebuilt the 3-litre engine, refurbished the gearbox, front suspension and axle etc. Over numerous weekends, Bruno and François worked tirelessly on the car in order to preserve its extraordinary, original patina. The interior has also been kept as close to its original condition as possible, with just the upholstery on the seats renewed (the original cloth has been conserved under discreet fabric covers). The dashboard has its original, large rev counter and an accelerator pedal on the right. With a comprehensive file of restoration invoices (approximately 100,000 €), the "Buick of Molsheim", as it has become known, runs beautifully (it runs to 4,000 rpm in 4th gear according to François Chevalier). With French registration, this elegant Bugatti 44 offers a marvellous opportunity to own a family car with transparent history.

The auction of this lot will take place on Friday 18 March.
https://www.artcurial.com/fr/lot-1928-bugatti-44-faux-cabriolet-par-labourdette-4134-115