BUGATTI’S TYPE 41 ROYALE CENTENNIAL RETURNS TO MOLSHEIM

Every September, Molsheim becomes a gathering point for generations of Bugatti. The town in Alsace, where Ettore Bugatti established his company in 1909, welcomes historic cars, contemporary hyper sports cars, collectors and enthusiasts for the annual Bugatti Festival, organised by the Enthusiasts Bugatti Alsace. In 2026, however, the occasion carried particular significance: it marked 100 years since the creation of the Type 41 Royale.

The Royale occupied a singular position in Ettore Bugatti’s ambitions. Conceived in 1926 as an automobile for royalty and heads of state, the Type 41 was built around extraordinary proportions and mechanical ambition. Its wheelbase measured 4.3 metres, its body stretched beyond six metres, and its production engine displaced approximately 12.8 litres, with around 300 horsepower. Only six complete cars were ultimately built between 1926 and 1933, each receiving individually developed bodywork.

For the centenary Festival, three of those six surviving Royales returned to Molsheim: the Coupé Napoléon, the Coupé de Ville Binder and the Packard Royale. Their reunion was especially appropriate given the location. The Molsheim grounds were not simply chosen as an exhibition venue; they are part of the story of the cars themselves and of the company that created them.

The Coupé Napoléon carries an especially direct connection to the Bugatti family. Its final form was designed by Jean Bugatti, Ettore’s son, and it was Ettore’s personal automobile. Alongside it stood the Coupé de Ville Binder and the Packard Royale, each representing a different interpretation of the same extraordinary chassis and mechanical foundation. Because the six Royales were individually bodied, the cars reveal how extensively the original concept could be adapted without losing its fundamental identity.

That individuality was part of the Royale’s original conception. Ettore Bugatti did not simply seek to produce a large luxury car; he wanted to create an automobile that represented the highest level of performance, engineering and craftsmanship available to his company. The production cars used a 12.8-litre straight-eight engine, while the original prototype employed an even larger power unit. Their scale was matched by their technical ambition, with the Royale becoming the largest and most powerful automobile produced at Molsheim at the time.

Yet the story of the Royale also carries an element of contradiction. Its intended clientele was extremely limited, and the economic conditions of the late 1920s and early 1930s made such an extravagant automobile difficult to sell. Bugatti had initially envisaged a much larger production run, but only six were constructed. All six have survived, making any gathering of several examples an unusually rare event.

The Festival used that rarity as the centrepiece of a broader celebration of Bugatti’s history. The three Royales were first presented to Bugatti customers around the Château before being made available to classic-car owners and Festival visitors. Their presence connected the private world of Bugatti ownership with the wider community that continues to preserve and celebrate the marque’s earlier cars.

For a select group of contemporary Bugatti owners, the weekend also included a Petit Tour through Alsace. Twenty modern Bugatti hyper sports cars travelled from the YONA Hotel in Obernai through the surrounding landscape, with stops including Maison Cattin and Domaine Haslach. The route was conceived as a journey through different periods of Bugatti history, linking modern models with the eras of the Veyron and Chiron and, ultimately, the cars created under Ettore and Jean Bugatti.

The customer programme culminated in a 1920s-inspired dinner at the Château, where the three Royales formed the visual centre of the evening. The setting recalled the period when Ettore Bugatti welcomed customers to Molsheim, creating an atmosphere in which the automobile was closely connected to hospitality, craftsmanship and personal relationships.

The following morning brought the wider Festival community into the same setting. Bugatti hosted participants and their classic cars at its Molsheim premises, where the three Royales were displayed alongside approximately 70 other historic Bugattis before the cars departed for their own tour through Alsace. The Festival then continued into the town itself, where its Sunday programme brought the cars and their owners into direct contact with residents and visitors.

Among the historic machinery was a collection of Type 35 Grand Prix cars, including a 1927 example, as well as a 1934 Type 57 Stelvio and a Type 57 C Cabriolet by Gangloff. Modern Bugatti models completed the display, creating a chronological conversation between the company’s racing heritage, coachbuilt touring cars and contemporary hyper sports cars. The 1934 Type 57 Stelvio subsequently received the “Prix Bugatti Automobiles”, while Bugatti President Christophe Piochon was presented with the “Bretzel d’Or” during the Festival’s awards.

Bugatti’s connection to Molsheim dates to 1909, when Ettore Bugatti deliberately established his company in the Alsatian town. The first automobile built there was the Type 13, followed by a succession of lightweight sports and racing cars that established the marque’s early reputation. Between 1920 and 1935, Bugatti achieved numerous international racing victories, while models such as the Type 35, Type 44 and Type 49 demonstrated the company’s ability to combine mechanical sophistication with distinctive design.

Ettore’s influence extended beyond automobiles. The enormous engines developed for the Royale later became the basis for Bugatti railcars used by the French railway network. This willingness to apply engineering ideas across different forms of transport was characteristic of Ettore’s approach and remains an important part of the historical context surrounding the Type 41.

The modern Bugatti story eventually returned to Molsheim. Following the brand’s acquisition by the Volkswagen Group in 1998, the marque re-established its home in Alsace and began production of the Veyron in 2005. The Chiron and its derivatives followed, while the company has continued to develop new expressions of its performance and design philosophy. The opening of a new Atelier for the Tourbillon era further reinforces Molsheim’s role as the centre of Bugatti’s contemporary identity.

For customers in the United Arab Emirates, Bugatti’s official presence is represented in Dubai by Al Habtoor Motors, the marque’s long-standing UAE sales and service partner. Bugatti has identified the Dubai operation as an official dealer since 2006, with its showroom on Sheikh Zayed Road. The brand has also maintained a dedicated service partnership in the city since 2013.

The 2026 Molsheim Festival therefore did more than commemorate a date in Bugatti’s calendar. By bringing three Royales together a century after the Type 41 first appeared, it placed the original ambition of Ettore Bugatti alongside the collectors, cars and craftsmanship that continue to sustain the marque today. In Molsheim, history remains unusually tangible: it is present in the streets, in the Château and, most visibly, in the machines that still return to the place where their story began.