In 1927 Bugatti had produced, in the form of the Type 43 Grand Sport, the first 100mph Grand Prix-engined sporting chassis suitable for everyday road use. It was in effect a close coupled four-seater touring model powered by the supercharged Type 35B Grand Prix engine. When in 1931 the Type 35 range was superseded by the twin-camshaft engined but almost identical Type 51 a corresponding road version soon followed.
This comprised a slightly detuned version of the new engine mounted in the concurrent Type 54 Grand Prix car’s heavier chassis but, unlike the Type 43, this new model was invariably a two-seater which was often referred to, quite justifiably, as the Super Sport. Indeed it truly was the ultimate exclusive supercar of the early Thirties.
Even its closest rival, the 8C Alfa Romeo, was produced in far greater numbers, the majority of which were in long-chassis form and often fitted with four-seater coachwork. In contrast almost half of the 38 Type 55 Bugattis built were fitted with flamboyant Jean Bugatti-designed roadster or closed coupé coachwork, the classic roadster being considered by many cognoscenti to be by far the most outstandingly attractive sports car ever offered to the motoring public.
| type | Series Production Car |
| engine | Inline-8 |
| aspiration | Roots-Type Bugatti Supercharger |
| valvetrain | DOHC, 2 Valves per Cyl |
| displacement | 2270 cc / 138.5 in³ |
| bore | 60 mm / 2.36 in |
| stroke | 100 mm / 3.94 in |
| power | 100.7 kw / 135 bhp @ 5500 rpm |
| specific output | 59.47 bhp per litre |
| driven wheels | RWD |
| transmission | 4-Speed Manual |
| final drive | 3.6:1 |
| top speed | ~180.2 kph / 112 mph |
| 0 – 60 mph | ~13.0 second |
