In 1926, Ettore Bugatti designed a child-sized electric car as a gift for his son Roland on his fourth birthday. It was modeled after the Bugatti Type 35 Grand Prix race car, the most successful racing car of all time, with more than 2500 victories to its name. The exquisite half-scale interpretation was so good that many Bugatti customers requested their own versions for their children. That’s how the iconic “Baby” Bugatti Type 52 was born.
Even after almost a century, the charming little car continues to capture the imaginations of automobile enthusiasts and experts, which includes the French automaker’s former lead test driver, Pierre-Henri Raphanel. In fact, the former F1 racing driver has been so fascinated with it that he teamed up with Bugatti on a recreation of the Baby Type 52.
Pierre-Henri’s journey with Bugatti began in 2005. Not only has he conducted more than 10,000 road tests around the world for the automaker, but he also set a world-record top speed of 431.072 km/h with the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport in 2010.
The racing driver decided to celebrate his long-standing association with Bugatti and his passion for the legendary brand by bringing back the Baby Type 52 through his company, Nations Racing Legends. He assembled a team of some of the best master craftsmen and engineers from across France to create a truly authentic reinterpretation of the scaled-down model.
The exclusive series is limited to 99 hand-crafted examples that are made using original crafting techniques and the highest-quality materials that Ettore Bugatti himself had chosen. Over 100 manufacturing plans and period photos were studied to ensure every detail was accurate to the original version.
Crafted as a collectible art piece, the recreation features steel-frame rails, hand-beaten aluminum bodywork, a nickel-plated brass radiator, wooden brake drums, and leather seats. Bugatti says each “Type 52 creation is far more than a replica; it is a masterful reinterpretation, paying homage to Bugatti’s heritage while celebrating Pierre-Henri’s own legendary journey with the brand.”
Out of the 99 Type 52 recreations, 60 of them will be sold to privileged customers of the brand who can customize them with their preferred colors or liveries. The other 39 units will include bespoke versions defined by exclusive configurations and materials. Bugatti says that a third of models have already been spoken for.
The pricing starts at €95,000 (around $102,000), which excludes taxes. If you miss out on the chance to buy one, you can have a look at the Baby II by Little Car Company, which starts at $36,000.
