Makes › Bugatti › Type 51 Coupé by Dubos · Coachbuilt · 1931 One-off
Bugatti
Type 51 Coupé by Dubos
One-off road coupé body on Type 51 GP chassis 51133
Still being researched: full specifications. Everything shown is checked against the cited sources. Know more? Send us a source.
Photo: Rex Gray · CC BY 2.0
Contents
01Overview
At a glance
- Built
- 1 Built
- Years
- 1931
- Engine
- Inline-8 · 2,262 cc / 2.3 LFactory: 2,262 cc
- Power
- 134 kW / 182 PSFactory: 180 hp · converted
- Top speed
- 225 km/hFactory: 140 mph · converted
- Body
- Not yet verified
- Designer
- Louis Dubos (coachwork)
- In this archive
- Not yet verified
- Surviving
- Not yet verified
Sources and any conflicting figures are in the sections below.
Why it matters
A Type 51 Grand Prix chassis that was given a one-off road coupe body in 1937, styled as a short-wheelbase echo of the Type 57SC Atlantic. The same chassis therefore existed as both a racing car and a road car, and its body and chassis were separated for decades before being reunited.
How rare is it?
Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.
Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.
Photos
Exterior, interior and detail photos with their licences.
Bugatti Type 51 Coupé by Dubos (Wikimedia Commons search)
Photo: Rex Gray · CC BY 2.0
Bugatti Type 51 Coupé by Dubos (Wikimedia Commons search)
Photo: Craig Howell from San Carlos, CA, USA · CC BY 2.0
Bugatti Type 51 Coupé by Dubos (Wikimedia Commons search)
Photo: Craig Howell from San Carlos, CA, USA · CC BY 2.0
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02Production & history
Production
Every figure says what it counts.
| What is counted | Figure | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total model productionSingle Dubos coupé on chassis 51133 ("One Dubos Coupe (40 Type 51s in total)") | 11 | Factory production | Independently researched |
Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.
History
The chassis was a Type 51 Grand Prix car driven by Louis Chiron in the 1931 season. Chiron was given the car, raced it for another season and sold it to Andre Bith. Around 1937 Bith retired it from competition and commissioned Louis Dubos in Paris to build a coupe body in the style of the Type 57SC Atlantic. Work began on 2 April 1937 and the car was delivered on 20 July. At the 1937 Bagatelle concours it was placed second overall.
Bith sold the car before the war and it dropped out of sight. In the early 1950s an American owner removed the Dubos body and refitted the chassis as a Grand Prix car; the coupe body went to another collector and was mounted on a made-up chassis. The chassis was bought by J.B. Nethercutt in 1959 and given a new Grand Prix body. The Dubos body came up at auction in August 2000, the museum recognised that it already owned the matching chassis, and the two were reunited and restored. The car appeared at Pebble Beach in 2003, finishing second in class and winning the French Cup.
Variants
How each version differs from the standard Type 51 Coupé by Dubos.
No variants documented yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
03Specifications
Technical specifications
Engine
| Engine family | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Engine code | Not yet verified |
| Layout | Inline-82 Independently researched |
| Cylinders | 82 Independently researched |
| Displacement | 2,262 cc / 2.3 LFactory: 2,262 cc3 Independently researchedBase Type 51 engine figure (level D source); Heacock gives 2.3 L. |
| Bore | 60 mmFactory: 60 mm4 Independently researchedBase Type 51 engine figure. |
| Stroke | 100 mmFactory: 100 mm4 Independently researchedBase Type 51 engine figure. |
| Compression ratio | Not yet verified |
| Valvetrain | DOHC2 Independently researched |
| Fuel system | Not yet verified |
| Induction | Supercharged2 Independently researched |
| Power | 134 kW / 182 PSFactory: 180 hp · converted4 Independently researchedBase Type 51 figure; Supercars.net (D) says 160 bhp. |
| Power at | Not yet verified |
| Torque | Not yet verified |
Transmission & drivetrain
| Gearbox | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Gears | Not yet verified |
| Driven wheels | Not yet verified |
Chassis, body & dimensions
| Chassis | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Front suspension | Solid beam axle with semi-elliptic springs passing through the axle2 Independently researchedDescribed for Bugatti chassis in general, not specifically for this car. |
| Rear suspension | Solid rear axle on quarter-elliptic springs2 Independently researchedDescribed for Bugatti chassis in general, not specifically for this car. |
| Brakes | Not yet verified |
| Steering | Not yet verified |
| Body construction | Not yet verified |
| Wheelbase | Not yet verified |
| Length | Not yet verified |
| Width | Not yet verified |
| Height | Not yet verified |
| Front track | Not yet verified |
| Rear track | Not yet verified |
| Kerb weight | Not yet verified |
| Dry weight | Not yet verified |
Performance
| Maximum speed | 225 km/hFactory: 140 mph · converted4 Independently researched |
|---|---|
| 0–100 km/h | Not yet verified |
| Fuel tank | Not yet verified |
“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.
04Colours & options
Factory colours & interiors
Original paint and trim, with the number of cars in each where a source gives it.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Factory options & codes
Codes are shown exactly as written by the manufacturer.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
05Individual cars
Chassis register
Every documented car, with its colours, history and where it is now. Open a row for the full record. Known chassis are not automatically authenticated originals.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Competition history
Every race result of the individual cars, in date order. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Auction & sale history
Documented public sales of the individual cars. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
See one in person
Museums where an example of this car can be seen.
No example is documented on public display yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
06Reference
Identification guide
How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.
Being verified against factory or registry sources before it is published. Have a source? Contribute it.
Sources
Each number links to the exact facts it supports.
-
1
1931 Bugatti Type 51 Dubos Coupé - Ultimatecarpage.com Level C
- 1 Single Dubos coupé on chassis 51133 ("One Dubos Coupe (40 Type 51s in total)")
-
2
The Bugatti Type 51 Dubos Coupé – The Racecar and the Road Car Level C Heacock Classic (Car Collector Magazine, Jan 2005) · 2019-02-19
- The engine was an 8-cylinder inline with dual overhead cams
- 8-cylinder inline
- dual overhead cams
- supercharged 2.3-liter dual overhead cam motor
- solid beam axle pierced by semi-elliptic springs
- solid rear axle suspended by quarter elliptic springs
- 3
-
4
The Bugatti Type 51 Dubos Coupé – The Racecar and the Road Car Level C Heacock Classic
- bore x stroke 60mm x 100mm
- capable of developing 180-horsepower
- Still capable of speeds reaching 140mph
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