The oldest driveable Bugatti in the world is the star of the latest episode of “Jay Leno's Garage,” and this time the car isn't a member of the Leno fleet.
It belongs to Alan Travis, a lover of pre-war—we're talking pre-WW1 here—cars, who Leno met during a recent Cars and Coffee meet.
The car is a 1913 Bugatti Type 22, one of the first Bugattis built by brand founder and namesake Ettore Bugatti. It's powered by an inline-4 that's a work of art in itself, and drive is to the rear wheels via a 4-speed manual transmission.
Travis has only recently completed a full restoration, with every possible measure taken to maintain authenticity. For example, he points out that the signature Bugatti Blue the car is finished in comes from a packet of cigarettes that was the favorite brand of Ettore Bugatti's wife. Travis was actually able to track down an original packet of the smokes.
You see, the Phoenix, Arizona resident doesn't only collect cars but also car-related memorabilia. Included in his collection are magazines and books on cars, some of them dating back to 1889.
