This New Mini Bugatti Is an Ode to One of the Most Successful Race Cars Ever
Bugatti's legacy has certainly been etched in history—and now it's been sketched on the livery of a pint-sized ode to one of the marque's iconic cars.
The French car maker has teamed up once again with Hedley Studios (formerly known as the Little Car Company) to create a one-off Baby II to pay homage to the marque's 115th birthday. This time around, the team tapped Jascha Straub, Bugatti's manager of Sur Mesure and Individualisation, to hand-draw meaningful images from the marque's history onto the new model.
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For the unversed, the Baby II is based off the original Baby, or the Type 52. The latter is a half-scale interpretation of Bugatti's storied Type 35 race car—one of the most successful racing cars of all time. And though the first Baby was meant to be a one-off for founder Ettore Bugatti's youngest son, Roland, customers wanted models for their own collections, so the car maker whipped up 500 examples from 1927 to 1936.
Hedley Studios wasn't ready to let the Baby go, though, so in 2019, the brand got a license from Bugatti to bring back the mini model. Each one it releases is a three-quarter scale electrified version of the original, full-size car it's based on. If that seems a tad tiny, don't fret, since the rides can be comfortably driven by most adults.
As for this new iteration, the duo chose to give the petite Baby II a 'Nocturne' black and 'Giallo Midas' yellow color scheme, a duo-tone look that was favored by Ettore himself and that can be seen on the marque's Type 57 Grand Raid Usine. On top of that yellow paint, Straub has hand-sketched a series of images (finished in a clear coat) that are part of Bugatti's legacy, such as Ettore's love for thoroughbred horses, the brand's headquarters at Château Saint Jean, and drawings of Ettore and his son, Jean Bugatti. Inside, meanwhile you'll find black leather from Bridge of Weir.
'Maintaining and celebrating the heritage of the brand, and its founder, was a major consideration for both the Hedley Studios team and me throughout the process—exploring the fascinating influences that have become an integral part of Bugatti's story,' Straub said in a press statement.
Hedley Studios has been making pint-sized iterations of iconic cars since its first delivery in 2021—and the brand has only been upping the ante ever since. In addition to models inspired by the Aston Martin DB5 and the Bentley Blower, Hedley Studios launched a blue Baby II inspired by Bugatti's new hybrid hypercar, the Tourbillon, just last fall.
This isn't the first time that the Baby II has become a canvas, either. Hedley Studios released two models last year adorned in artwork by New York-based artist Alex Alpert. For this project, the creative used acrylic markers on a specially prepared paint base to forge his black and white doodles, which were sealed with a clear coat. As for who gets to own this stunning new one-off, though, that remains to be seen.Best of Robb Report
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