Bugatti Type 55
1932–1935 · Bugatti Type 55 — Sports Car, Inline-8 Supercharged, designed by Jean Bugatti.
The Story
If the Type 35 was Bugatti’s racing soul, the Type 55 was its road-going heart. Launched in 1932, it took the twin-cam, supercharged 2.3-litre straight-eight from the Type 51 Grand Prix car and wrapped it in a chassis you could drive on the street — then handed the finest examples to Jean Bugatti, who penned a low, doorless roadster body that remains one of the most admired shapes of the pre-war era.
Just 38 Type 55 chassis were built, of which only 14 wore Jean’s factory roadster coachwork; fewer than a dozen survive with original bodies. They are, by some measures, rarer and more coveted than even the Type 57S Atalante.
For Studio Motors, the Type 55 roadster is a pre-war grail of the first order — Grand Prix mechanicals, coachbuilt beauty and blue-chip rarity in one car.
The Numbers
Benchmarked against its class
Each dial ranks this car within its Sports Car class — fuller means higher, and the tick marks the class midpoint.
Signature Colors
The Designer
Jean Bugatti
Ettore’s eldest son and the artistic force behind Bugatti’s most beautiful 1930s coachwork, including the Atlantic. Killed in 1939, aged 30, testing a Type 57 tank near Molsheim. Sources: Wikipedia (Bugatti).
Studio Motors POV
The pre-war Bugatti for those who want racing pedigree and rolling sculpture in one — and with original-bodied cars rarer than the Atalante, it is quietly one of the most blue-chip Bugattis of all.
The Engine
Bugatti Straight-8 (Type 55, 2.3 SC)
Lineage
Where it sits in the bloodline
Market & Value
Values on cars like this move monthly. Our brokers price from real transactions.
What Reviewers Said About Type 55
Worth Knowing About the Type 55
3 Things You Didn’t Know
- 1) Its engine is a detuned version of the Type 51 Grand Prix car's twin-cam supercharged straight-eight.
- 2) Only 14 wore Jean Bugatti's factory roadster body; fewer than a dozen survive with it.
- 3) Genuine Jean Bugatti roadsters are rarer than the Type 57S Atalante.
5 Fast Facts
- • 38 chassis built (1932–1935); 14 factory roadsters.
- • 2.3L supercharged DOHC straight-8; ~130 hp; >110 mph.
- • Roadster body designed by Jean Bugatti.
- • Ex-Rothschild example sold $7.1M (Bonhams, 2020).
- • In 1985, chassis 55220 was the most expensive car ever sold in Britain (£440,000).
Provenance
Owners & what to look for
Famous Owners
Victor Rothschild (later 3rd Baron Rothschild) bought chassis 55220 new while still at Cambridge; decades on it passed through Boston professor Dean S. Edmonds Jr. (a £440,000 British record in 1985; Pebble Beach class win, 1993) and sold for $7.1M in 2020. Ralph Lauren owned a Type 55 until 2003, when it went to UK collector William Ainscough.
Studio Buyer’s Brief
Coachwork and matching numbers are everything: a genuine Jean Bugatti factory roadster with its original body and engine is a different — and far higher — class of car than a rebodied chassis. Documented chassis history and concours provenance anchor the top values. Verify originality ruthlessly.
Full Specifications
- Make / Model
- Bugatti Type 55
- Class
- Sports Car
- Production years
- 1932–1935
- Units built
- 38 (16 roadsters, 7 coupés)
- Variants
- Super Sport Roadster, Coupé
- Engine layout
- Front
- Engine
- Inline-8 Supercharged
- Engine family
- Bugatti Straight-8 (Type 55, 2.3 SC)
- Displacement
- 2.3 L (2,300 cc) DOHC straight-8, supercharged
- Power
- 130 hp
- Torque
- lb-ft
- 0–60 mph
- s
- Top speed
- 110 mph
- Power-to-weight
- 159 hp/tonne · 13.8 lb/hp
- Transmission
- 4-speed manual
- Drivetrain
- Rear-wheel drive · Petrol
- Curb weight
- 1800 lb
Questions
Type 55 FAQ
How many Bugatti Type 55s were built?
Thirty-eight chassis between 1932 and 1935, of which 14 wore Jean Bugatti’s factory roadster body and 7 were coupes. Fewer than a dozen original-coachwork roadsters survive.
Who designed the Bugatti Type 55?
Jean Bugatti, Ettore’s son. The roadster body is considered one of the most beautiful pre-war designs, and its engine was derived from the Type 51 Grand Prix car’s twin-cam supercharged straight-eight.
How much is a Bugatti Type 55 worth?
Jean Bugatti factory roadsters trade in the $5 to $10M range. A notable ex-Rothschild example sold for $7.1M at Bonhams Amelia Island in 2020.
What makes the Bugatti Type 55 so collectible?
Its engine came from the Type 51 Grand Prix car, giving it genuine racing pedigree in a road-going chassis. With only 14 Jean Bugatti factory roadsters built (fewer than a dozen surviving with original coachwork), they are among the rarest pre-war Bugattis.
Bugatti Type 55 vs Type 57 — what is the difference?
The Type 55 is a lighter, race-derived sports car with a supercharged 2.3L straight-eight from the Type 51 GP car. The Type 57 is a larger grand tourer with a 3.3L engine, produced in far greater numbers: 710 versus 38.
The Bugatti Lineup
Explore every Bugatti
Type 55 ’32Type 57 ’34Type 57SC Atlantic ’36
Chiron ’16La Voiture Noire ’19
Divo ’20Centodieci ’22Bolide ’24W16 Mistral ’24Tourbillon ’26
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