Recently, an extraordinary event appeared to unfold in the realm of automobiles. Through several posts on Reddit, an individual using two distinct profiles revealed what seemed to be the remnants of a vehicle that has been absent since WWII and the target of a global quest ever since: a Bugatti Type 57 Atlantic, one of only four constructed in the mid-1930s. As per the original poster, it was “La Voiture Noire”—the singular missing Atlantic today, a groundbreaking discovery, the most valuable Bugatti ever, valued at over $100 million if it still exists today.
However, upon scrutinizing the evidence and consulting sources with direct insight, it has been concluded that the car alluded to in the now-deleted comments and images is highly unlikely to be La Voiture Noire. Nonetheless, it could potentially be something intriguing on its own, conceivably remnants of the original 1935 Bugatti Type 57 “Aérolithe” prototype that reportedly got dismantled to aid in the production of other Bugattis. Here’s what has been uncovered so far.
Speculation swiftly arose following the initial Reddit posts on Nov. 29, and it’s no surprise that minds wandered with dreams of discovering La Voiture Noire, or “The Black Car” in French. If it were still in existence, it would be a hidden gem that could rewrite Bugatti’s narrative if recovered. The black-painted, supercharged Atlantic was a cherished creation of the company’s luminary Jean Bugatti, with a brief yet illustrious past before vanishing in 1941. Allegedly, the car was being transported via train to Bordeaux to evade the approaching German forces, but it never reached its intended destination. It disappeared without a trace, remaining undiscovered for 80 years.
There are compelling reasons to believe that this discovery is highly unlikely to be the said vehicle. Firstly, our investigations indicate that the engine does not match. The supercharged Atlantics’ inline-eight engine was equipped with a distinctive intake manifold different from the standard Type 57s, and thanks to an undisclosed informant whose insights will be elaborated on later, photographic evidence clearly demonstrates that this is not a supercharged automobile.
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The chassis is unsuitable for the car to be recognized as an Atlantic. In a conversation with Jason Torchinsky on Jalopnik, Sandy Leith, a vintage Bugatti enthusiast and a member of the Bugatti Trust, mentioned to the publication that “a regular T57 chassis frame [is not] appropriate for the unidentified Black Atlantic. It is expected to have a T57S chassis frame, which is notably distinct from a regular T57 chassis frame.” The “S” in T57S designates “Surbaissé,” meaning lowered. What Leith is emphasizing is the adaptation of the car from the standard T57 in terms of height, necessitating the reconfiguration of the rear axle to run directly through the rear subframe instead of being positioned beneath it. Given the chassis discrepancy, the authenticity of the La Voiture Noire assertion remains questionable, regardless of the assertions made by the Reddit user in their remarks. It’s a Type 57 chassis, one among the many that were manufactured. While still valuable, it does not command a price anywhere close to $100 million.
However, this is not the complete narrative. Prior to the introduction of the production Type 57 Atlantics in 1936, a sole prototype, with a body made of a magnesium alloy known as “Elektron” and purportedly based on a standard, unlowered Type 57 chassis, was crafted in 1935. This vehicle, recognized as the Aérolithe, is potentially as enigmatic as La Voiture Noire itself.
Its historical documentation is brief, debuting at the Paris Auto Salon in 1935 and vanishing shortly thereafter. It is probable that it was disassembled upon its return to the factory and scavenged to aid the struggling Bugatti in ramping up production of Type 57s. Reportedly, its original body is no more—some suggest it was repurposed for the currently absent black Atlantic. Nonetheless, there is a possibility that the extant components of the Aérolithe could be concealed beneath the car’s exterior in the Reddit images. Additionally, The Drive has been in contact with multiple sources asserting knowledge of the car’s whereabouts: Redline Restorations, a prestigious restoration workshop situated in Bridgeport, Connecticut, with expertise in top-tier restoration work.
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“It was actually a roller chassis inside the building,” a confidential source, who asserts to have witnessed the Bugatti at Redline in person, disclosed to The Drive. “Details about its origin were relatively obscure.” As per the source, the chassis (reportedly numbered 57331) has supposedly undergone a metallurgical analysis for dating purposes. The chassis, along with the vehicle’s engine, radiator, firewall, and a few other components, remain intact. Nonetheless, the body is a replica. “That body is entirely a reproduction,” the source affirmed. “The original body is no longer in existence.”
How did this significant fragment of French automotive history supposedly find its way to a renovation workshop in Connecticut?
“One of Redline’s senior mechanics, with a rich industry experience… was in France visiting a client,” the source narrated. The mechanic purportedly journeyed to the country in the 1980s or 1990s—our source couldn’t recollect the exact timeframe—to acquire a different vehicle from said client and while heading back, got notified about the chassis. “The way he described it, it was within the possession of a French film producer, who had a storage facility… filled with trailers for movie sets.”
Reportedly, after navigating through various film-related clutter and contending with a swarm of restless bees, the mechanic stumbled upon the concealed gem, slowly deteriorating in a corner of the warehouse. “Up to that moment, nobody was aware of that vehicle’s existence, and the previous owner had kept it under wraps as well,” the source mentioned. Allegedly, the mechanic then purchased the chassis and any remaining components of the car alongside it and eventually transported them back to the United States. Since then, the car and its chassis have ostensibly been residing on American soil, untouched and awaiting restoration.
It’s a rather improbable scenario, but the source asserted that the owners of Redline believe that the surviving original parts legitimately belong to the long-lost Aérolithe prototype. This contradicts the initial Reddit claims, where the owner of the car was assumed to possess La Voiture Noire—however, the individual in question subsequently deleted their entire Reddit account while in the process of
without evidence from their posts, there is no method for verifying that.
