“It was thanks to the passion and perseverance of Romano Artioli that Bugatti revived ”.
Who asserts this is Stephan Winkelmann, current president of Bugatti. the most exclusive car brand in the world, with the ability to combine luxury and extreme sportsmanship.
The current number one of the French brand recognizes that the passion and tenacity of this Italian character was necessary to “transporting the brand to the 21st century”.
Michael Schumacher was the most prominent customer of the Bugatti EB 110.
Love for cars; love for bugatti
Artioli’s love for cars is closely related to his experience. Born near Mantua, the racing driver’s home region Tazio Nuvolari, As a child I was fascinated by racing drivers and their machines.
At age 12, he devoured a book on driver’s licenses. “After that, it was clear to me that my life would be dedicated to cars and engines”, He once told the magazine Classic Driver.
Artioli studied mechanical engineering in Bolzano and after the Second War he devoted himself to auto repair. When in 1952, at the age of 20 years, Artioli heard the news that production at Bugatti had ceased production.
Romano Artioli took 39 years to achieve his dream of reviving Bugatti.
The mythical brand always enjoyed the current reputation. But the extraordinary of his creations and his exorbitant prices they were not very well received in a troubled 1930s.
In addition, the death of the creative soul of the brand, Jean Bugatti, son of Ettore, founder of the company, led the latter to a severe depression, before passing away in 1947.
Artioli himself recalls that when he learned of the bugatti closure he vowed that “if no one reacts to the situation at Bugatti, I will work as long as necessary to get the brand back.”
Copies of the Bugatti EB 110 at the Blue Factory in Campogagliano, Italy.
It would take 39 years achieve your ambition. In the following years, the Italian made a living as an importer of vehicles, including General Motors and Suzuki brands.
It also became the largest importer of Japanese cars in Italy and the largest distributor from Ferrari. His private collection of vehicles at the time, of course, contained numerous historical Bugatti models.
To buy Bugatti
His success in selling cars allowed the Italian, in the mid-1980s, to negotiate the sale of the brand with the French government, discreetly and hidden from public view, for two years.
Romano Artioli today lives by the Adratic Sea with his wife, Renata.
In 1987, he founded Bugatti Cars SpA and became its president. Artioli initially wanted to resurrect the company in Molsheim, in the French Alsace, the place of origin of the company.
“Molsheim is comparable to Maranello in Italy. It is a mecca for Bugatti, but at that time there were no production sites or engineers in the region ”, said this man who is 88 years old today and lives on the Adriatic Sea.
He asked fans of the brand to support him in creating a link between Molsheim and a new location: Campogalliano, Italy.
Romano Artioli giving a speech last year at the abandoned Campogagliano plant.
In the years that followed, the automobile production plant most modern in the world It was built with intensive planning on a 240,000 square meter site in the vicinity of Ferrari, Maserati, De Tomaso and Lamborghini.
The site, which remains standing today, featured an administration building, a design studio, an engine development and test area, production plants, a test track, an elegant dining room, and an exhibition space.
The corridors were wide, open, bathed in natural light and equipped with air conditioning systems so that employees feel as if they are sitting outside.
The person in charge of the architectural work of the Blue FactoryAs it became known, it was her cousin Giampaolo Benedini, who designed a spectacular building, which inspired other manufacturers later on.
The car that captivated Schumacher is born
Benedini too modified the design initial of the future supercar, softening the sharp edges and extreme wedge shape.
“With the EB 110 we had to push the limits in terms of performance and quality. He owed it to Ettore Bugatti. Production performance was less important than quality and uncompromising innovation, ”explained Artioli, who recruited the best engineers and designers in the region to implement his plan.
The EB 110 was born on a blank sheet of paper, breaking with many of the industry conventions and reaching top of the world of the car.
It would become the best and fastest supercar in the world. The EB 110 featured the first mass-produced carbon chassis, all-wheel drive, 3.5-liter V12 engine with five valves per cylinder and four turbochargers.
Michael Schumacher went to Campogagliano to pick up his Bugatti EB 110. He asked for it in yellow with a blue interior.
The 550 hp power allowed this two-seater to reach a maximum speed of 351 km/h.
Almost 30 years ago, on what would have been Ettore Bugatti’s 110th birthday (September 15, 1991), Romano Artioli presented the EB 110 in Paris.
More than 5,000 reporters and leading industry figures from around the world, not to mention countless eager viewers, attended the premiere in Paris.
Several hundred security personnel were needed to safeguard the event at the Place de la Défense. Especially at the moment when Alain Delon drove the brand new supercar by Champs Elysees with Renata, Artioli’s wife.
As a tribute to the EB 110, Bugatti designed the Centodieci, a model that is beginning to produce.
The most prominent customer was Michael Schumacher, who had tested several supercars as part of a comparison test for a trade magazine and was particularly impressed for the EB 110, which he considered unmatched.
“Michael came to Campogalliano immediately after and bought a Super Sport yellow with a blue GT interior. He did not ask for a discount, it was evident that he was a fan ”, recalled Artioli.
Each owner was able to individually configure their own EB 110, such as a tailored suit. However, times have changed.
Although the response to the fantastic model had been excellent despite the global financial crisis, Americans were suffering the effects of the Gulf War and the value of the yen was increasing while in Italy the economy was collapsing: the market was contracting and sales fell.
In addition, Artioli had invested in Lotus and accumulated debts. And this was followed by problems with suppliers.
After 39 years of dreams and seven years of hard work, Romano Artioli’s Bugatti project came to an end. On September 23, 1995, after the construction of 128 vehicles, went bankrupt. He paid his 220 employees until the last day.
“Employees understood the spirit of Bugatti. They were what made the EB 110 so special, losing all of that was a shock. It was a terrible day for everyone, ”Artioli explained.
The super saloon EB 112, an exalted four-door, was almost ready but could not be launched on the market. “An incredible car, a pleasure to drive, with a 6.0-liter V12 installed behind the front axle. The chassis was made of carbon fiber and the suspension was lightweight. It drove like a kart ”, recalled the Italian.
But the legend that is Bugatti did not rest long. In 1998, the company returned to the French town of Molsheim hand in hand with the Volkswagen Group, to the place where Ettore Bugatti built his first car in his name in 1909.
But the Artioli period was necessary for Bugatti to enter a new era. One that continues to have it as the most exclusive car brand on the planet.
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