Background of the Bugatti Type 52

The half-scale model of the Type 35 race car for children, "electrically propelled. 12-volt accumulator [battery], 4-wheel cable brakes, aluminium wheels, pneumatic tires.(From me Bugatti Story, L'Ebe Bugatti, Chilton, Philadelphia. 1967).
After building the first example in 1927 for Roland Bugatti. second and youngest son of Ettore, born 28 August 1922. when his father and mother were both 41 years old. "The Type 52 has been one of the most copied of Bugatti car designs" wrote Mickey Mishne in the catalog for the exhibit of this talented family at the Cleveland Museum of Art, further noting that "since the 1950s several European and American Type 52 designs have appears, including one in a recent Nevada toy catalogue, for $15,000.
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AT THE 1927 MILAN AUTOMOBILE SHOW. Bugatti showed an attractive miniature children's Grand Prix Bugatti; this was originally built for young Roland, the second son of Ettore, born in 1922. This children's car was faterput on the market, the correct factory reference being Type 52. It was listed as the Type 'Baby' for children of six to eight years of age; it had a speed of 10 to 12mph, driven by a 12volt accumulator. It was six feet in length and weighed 150 Ib, and had pneumatic tyres on detachable wheels. with brakes on all four wheels, the brake shoes consisting of a one piece expanding annulus of wood. Transmission was by a single stage gear train from an electric motor mounted on the rear axle, the left-hand wheel being free on the axle. Reverse could be selected by a change-over switch in the motor field windings. A throttle-like lever operated a stepped resistance to vary speed. The prototype evidently had a wheelbase and track of 1'8 m X 0'9 m; no doubt to increase leg room. the production models had the wheelbase lengthened at the expense of aesthetics to 2'05 m.
These Baby Bugattis were much sought after in France and were often seen on the promenades at DeauvitSe and other smart resorts. Today they are collectors' pieces. - Conway, 1968

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Donald Koleman
Competition Motors Ltd.
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