Forty years after Ettore Bugatti’s death in 1947, the once legendary but moribund marque, one of the most renowned in automotive history, was acquired by ambitious Italian businessman Romano Artioli, whose aim was nothing less than a resurrection of Bugatti in the form of a state-of-the-art supercar.

Artioli chose Modena, home to Ferrari, Lamborghini and Maserati, as the place to build his modern factory from which the first completed production car rolled out in 1992.

Designated ‘EB110’ (signifying its debut 110 years after Ettore’s birth) the first new Bugatti since the 1950s was an advanced mid-engined supercar acclaimed as worthy successor to its formidable antecedents.

The Bugatti EB110 was designed by none other than engineer Paolo Stanzani and stylist Marcello Gandini, co-creators of the exotic Lamborghini Countach supercar to which the EB110, with its short nose, wedge-shaped body and gull-wing doors, bore a strong resemblance.

Beneath the skin there were similarities too, ...