REPORT - 2022 Bugatti Festival France
Words: Mike Ryan and Bugatti
Photos: Bugatti
Since the early 1980s, the birthplace of Bugatti in Molsheim, France, has welcomed owners of classic Bugattis (and a few new ones) to the ‘Bugatti Festival’, an event organised by the Enthousiastes Bugatti Alsace (EBA = Bugatti Enthusiasts, Alsace) club.
In 2022, the 39th edition of the festival brought together more than 50 classic Bugattis that originally rolled out of the Molsheim factory, uniting them with some of the latest machines to wear the famous Bugatti badge.
The Bugatti Festival is always held on the weekend closest to 15 September, which is the birth date of founder, Ettore Bugatti. In 2022, that meant 16-18 September for the three-day event.
With Molsheim being the place where Ettore Bugatti founded his eponymous company, built his cars and was laid to rest with other family members, the small subprefecture in the northeast of France is akin to sacred ground for Bugatti enthusiasts, which came from all over Europe and even overseas for the 2022 event.
“When we call Molsheim the home of Bugatti, we mean it in the truest sense of the word,” said Christophe Piochon, President of Bugatti Automobiles. “Yes, the cars are handbuilt here, but it’s a far deeper connection than that. A visit to Molsheim is like a pilgrimage for enthusiasts of the Bugatti brand, delivering a greater understanding of the man that began this journey and the cars that have been written into the pages of history.
“We’re proud to be continuing this legacy by supporting the Bugatti Festival and maintaining the home of Bugatti in Alsace," Piochon added.
A Tribute and a Drive
Given the fact that almost forty editions of the Bugatti Festival have been held, some traditions have been established with the event. These start with a visit to the final resting place of Ettore Bugatti in the Dorlisheim Cemetery, which for the 2022 Festival, was on the opening day, Friday 16 September.
Next on the agenda for the 56 classic Bugattis that gathered in Molsheim was a driving tour of the Alsace region that straddles the German and French border.
The EBA says the best way to pay your respects to Ettore Bugatti, the man who in his day built the world’s fastest, most luxurious and most advanced cars, is to enjoy them in a region that the founder called home, which is exactly what the participants in Bugatti Festival 2022 did.
The line-up of 56 cars represented a “greatest hits” from Bugatti’s past, including examples of the Type 13, Type 35, Type 44, Type 49, Type 57 and the very rare, post-war Type 101, of which only eight were built.
Of the cars participating, several had racing heritage, with some described as Grand Prix legends. Not every Bugatti was a racer, though. Some were built with luxury in mind, rather than outright pace, hiding their cutting-edge engineering (for the period) under elegant coachbuilt bodies, some of which were produced by outside firms, while others came from the pen of Ettore Bugatti’s son, Jean, including the imposing Type 41 (aka Royale) and Type 57; the model line on which the iconic ‘Atlantic’ coupes were built.
Let’s Do It Again
The partnership between the EBA and Bugatti Automobiles allowed Bugatti Festival participants access that would be denied to most others. On 17 September, this included an invite to Château Saint Jean, the home of Bugatti in Molsheim, where Bugatti President Piochon welcomed the enthusiasts for a private breakfast.
Of the 38 pervious editions of the Bugatti Festival, Piochon has participated in 16, including ten as a jury member for the event’s concours.
After breakfast, the convoy of Bugattis set off for another day of driving the Alsace region and Vosges mountains, experiencing a mixture of roads and a variety of scenery.
Joining the classics on this day were much newer Bugatti models, including two Veyrons, a Veyron Grand Sport, a Chiron Sport and a rare 'America'; a variant of Bugatti's '90s supercar designed specifically for the US market.
Alongside these customer cars, Bugatti Automobiles also supplied a Chiron Pur Sport and a Chiron Super Sport to join those enjoying the day.
Showcase Sunday
The final day of the 2022 Bugatti Festival, Sunday, 18 September, gave the general public a chance to see the entrants’ cars up close, with a display of new and old cars around the Parc des Jésuites in Molsheim.
As it’s rare to see so many Bugattis together in place, this gathering draws enthusiasts from far and wide, according to the EBA, but it wasn’t just a “show ‘n’ shine”.
The final day also saw the cars parade through the streets of Molsheim, followed by a concours, where a panel of judges, including Piochon, examined each vehicle before announcing the winners across a range of categories.
Grand prize was the ‘Coupe Bugatti Automobiles’ trophy, which was awarded to a Type 57C Cabriolet Corsica, honouring Bugatti’s legacy of open-top cars.
Of the other awards, the Trophée Fondation Bugatti went to a Type 46 ‘Petite Royale' by Swiss coachbuilders Gangloff. This trophy, built from the same materials used to create Bugatti cars, was crowned with a piece of Lalique crystal.
Other prizes included the Trophée Lalique, Grand Prix Enthousiastes Bugatti Alsace for racers, Trophée Cul Pointu for ‘boat tail’ cars and Prix de la Meilleure Participation Internationale for entries from outside France.
First-time participants received a prize from the EBA to thank them for joining this 39th edition and encourage their return.
Ongoing and Upcoming
For some time after the conclusion of the 2022 Bugatti Festival, Bugatti displayed a Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse World Record Edition (honouring Bugatti’s past title of fastest production car in the world at 431.07km/h) inside a transparent cube in the centre of Molsheim.
(NOTE: At time of writing, the Koenigsegg Jesko holds the record for the world’s fastest production car at 447.3km/h.)
While the 2022 Bugatti Festival was grand, 2023 will be the event’s 40th Anniversary, so expect this year's Festival to be even grander!
