An Ultra-Rare 1999 Bugatti EB112 Saloon Is Heading to Auction


You likely don’t have one of these truly unusual Bugattis sitting in your collection—but that can change soon enough.

RM Sotheby’s will auction off an exceedingly rare example of a modern-day saloon from the marque, the EB112, as part of its annual Monaco sale next month. The curvaceous four-door was developed to add some diversity to the French marque’s lineup during the 1990s but never made it to production.

The EB112 dates to Romano Artioli’s brief time in charge of Bugatti, before it was acquired by Volkswagen Group. The Italian entrepreneur brought the company back from the dead in the late 1980s and set up its new headquarters in his home country. The resurrected automaker’s first car, the EB 110 GT, was released in 1991, but it never caught on, in part because it debuted in the midst of a global recession. Bugatti unveiled its next model, the EB112, at the 1993 Geneva Motor Show but went bankrupt two years later before it could start building the car. Shortly after, Monegasque businessman Gildo Pallanca Pastor bought the company’s assets. As part of the deal, he acquired the chassis and components needed to complete two EB112 examples, bringing the total number of completed vehicles to three.

The 1999 Bugatti EB112 in profile

1999 Bugatti EB112

Simon Gosselin/RM Sotheby’s

The EB112 up for sale was the second rebuilt by Pastor and remained in his possession until 2015. ItalDesign’s Giorgetto Giugiaro penned the car’s smooth, flowing bodywork, which includes nods to several classic Bugattis, such as the Type 57 SC Atlantic and Type 41. Here, the auto is finished in glossy black broken up only by the chrome of its horseshoe grille and its vented alloy wheels. The surprisingly restrained interior can comfortably fit four and is covered in black leather with “EB” emblazoned into the headrest of each seat.

The EB112, like the EB110, is powered by a V-12. In the saloon, the mill has a larger displacement (6.0 liters compared to 3.5 liters) but produces less power because it lacks the supercar’s quartet of turbochargers. Despite this, it still makes a very respectable 450 hp and 479 ft lbs of torque, which is routed to all four wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox. This example has just 241 miles on the odometer and was fully restored earlier this decade, so it figures to be in excellent shape.

Inside the 1999 Bugatti EB112

Inside the EB112

Simon Gosselin/RM Sotheby’s

Intrigued? The EB112 will cross the block as part of RM Sotheby’s upcoming Monaco, which will be held on Saturday, April 25. The auction house expects the four-door to sell for between $1.75 and $2.3 million.

Click here to see more photos of the 1999 Bugatti EB112.

Simon Gosselin/RM Sotheby’s





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