25th Great Australian Bugatti Rally

The Saunders' Bugatti T38/43 enjoys nicer weather.

The first week was spoiled by a few unseasonal showers, leaving some crews rather damp at the end of a day on the road, but the weather improved for the second week as the route headed north up the east coast.

I managed a couple of days in the middle of the tour (in a 1970s Mercedes for lack of a Bug’) at Port Stephens and followed the Rally.

That weekend there were 12 Bugattis on the road with a lone Lombard AL3. Several other members followed in various modern cars including a Ferrari, an Aston Martin, a Porsche and yours truly in the 450 SLC.

The international contingent consisted of Brits David and Christine Feakes in their much-travelled T40. Mike Preston and Louise Treutlein had the use of the T35 belonging to local racer, restorer and author Bob King. Chassis number 4450, this is the ex-Glen Kidston car that ran in the Grand Prix de Provence in February 1925 and it still wears the yellow stripe used at that event to indicate it was in the two-liter class. It also has the claim of being the first Grand Prix Bugatti to race at Brooklands, but it later came to Australia and when the original straight-eight gave up the ghost in the late ‘thirties it was replaced by a four-cylinder 1,500cc Anzani engine. This later had a Cozette blower added when Bob King acquired it in the ‘sixties but in recent years he has restored it to original 1925 ‘Kidston’ specification.

T43 of Luc and Stephan Slijpen from Holland take a break.

Two crews from Switzerland were Karel and Gwendoline Van De Velde in a supercharged 1929 T43 Grand Sport, and Hubert Jaunin with Anna Williams in a T44 Roadster. Both of these crews had come straight from taking part in the New Zealand rally; how’s that for dedication to the cause? Patrick Friedli and Nelly Chevrier brought a T44 from France and Luc and Stephan Slijpen from Netherlands drove their T43.

Event organizer John Shellard's T44.

Of the locals, as Bob King had lent his T35 to the British crew, he was driving various cars and helping other members including a stint in the T38/43 of Stuart Saunders. Rally organizer John Shellard, partnered by Zhao Hang Chen had a busy time between driving his 1926 T44 and making sure all the guests were taken care of. Ian and Anitra Kenny were doing fine in their charming T40 roadster as was Neil Murdoch in another T44. Club president Roger Cameron and Allison had a well-restored T44 going well, complete with a rare Louchet ‘Frog and Shell’ radiator cap mascot. Club Captain Mark McKibbin looked the part in his little blue T37, another running without mudguards. He was later seen heading south through Sydney as we overtook him on the way home; I am not sure if he was planning to make it to Melbourne solo and non-stop.

Geoff Murdoch's French Lombard was right at home among the Bugattis.

The Lombard is a rarity owned by member Geoff Murdoch. A 1928 model with a supercharged 1,100cc twin-cam engine it was entered for the 1929 Australian Grand Prix as ‘unsupercharged’ and finished second overall and first in class driven by Bill Lowe. Similar in length but much lower than a T35 it does not look out of place running with contemporary Bugattis.