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Films:
L’art Novo: Bugatti’s Glorious Past Is Alive At Garage Novo
Great video about a great family. You guys, at Petrolicious, shoud now pay a visit to Laurent Rondoni and his son Raphael, in Carpentras (South France), who are the best Bugatti’s restoration experts of the country – with Novo family, that is. Laurent Rondoni casualy comes to Mulhouse, where I live, to take care of the Bugattis of the collection Schlumpf when needed. This, alone, says quite a lot, I think – but if you’re fortunate enough (like I was once, in 2008) to visit their garage, you will quickly understand there is much more to tell about them…
That is typically the sort of workshop that we have here, in France. Even if most of all these pre-war manufacturers already died, some of father to son workshops contribute to make the Jewels to live. In fact, this is not as rare as we can think to cross the road of a wonderful Bugatti, Delahaye, Talbot or something else in France, because graceful to these little garages, these cars are still on the road and are able to be driven freely on the roads.
Just another thing to know, the most important collection of Bugatti sat in Mulhouse in the Cité de l’Automobile, a national museum founded by the Schlumpf brothers and everybody can visit it, it is a particular atmosphere and for classic cars enthusiasts, it is a must stop during a travel in France.
(attached: A Bugatti Type 35 raced at the Grand Prix Historique de Pau 2013)
It’s over??!!
New all-time favorite video.
I was [i]just[/i] thinking about the first article you did on this family in the early days. Just fantastic. It’s great to get a glimpse into the workshop. I grew up in and still operate in an environment very similar to this. I just love the whole thing, as the shop, the methods, the pace, and whole dynamic are very familiar.
There are some old tools in that shop that have been doing good work for a long time. It’s nice to see that knowledge moving down the line. It is rare.
Absolutely wonderful. Thanks for sharing.
You have to be in France to see Bugattis driven on the open roadster instead of polished in the garage!
Jean Novo last month at a typical french event:
More of my pictures of this event with some great Bugattis: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stijnsioen/sets/72157652901411122
No doubt . Along with the silent majority such as myself having become tired of trailer queens and 100 point restorations that never see the pavement . My usual comment being ;
” Designers , engineers , craftsmen , artisans and mechanics have sweated blood to make the car work so out of respect if not for the love of their memory : Drive the ___ thing ! ” Which this family obviously does .
FYI ; Petrolicious staff ; I’m on my 3rd viewing today because yeah : Its that good a story as well as that good a video !
TJ,
Thanks for the kind words, and I’m glad you’ve enjoyed it so much!
I have to admit, that prior to getting a ride in Novo’s Bugatti as Matthew Lange mentioned above, I was very ignorant about the experience of pre-war cars. Riding in that Type 35B the way that Fred Novo drove it was an eye-opening experience! Everything I love about ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s cars was so much more amplified in that Bugatti.
If you’ve ever driven a T35 yourself you know just how talented a driver Fred Novo is to be putting up that much of a challenge . Suffice it to say I have and to be blunt : It aint easy even in comparison to other cars of the era . I can’t even begin to comprehend how many hours it must of taken for him to be able to say now its just like driving a modern car . Amazing ! This family has my respect on so many levels ……………..
If you haven’t already you might want to read Petrolicious’ Afshin’s experiences of a few circuit laps with Fred http://petrolicious.com/fearing-death-in-a-1927-bugatti-is-addicting
Absolutely and beyond any shadow of a doubt the best video Petrollicious has ever produced ! I cringed as it came to an end wishing there could be more .
As to the shop ? You know the book featured yesterday on automotive travels in France ?
For me , in truth , I’d be perfectly thrilled to travel to France just to sweep the floors at L’Art Novo for a week even if it meant paying for the privilege just for the pure joy of soaking up the all sights and sounds of their incredible work and all the fantastic cars in various states of repair in and around the shop .
Then add in the fact that the company has been successfully handed down thru the generations ?Amazing ! What a rare gem !
Suffice it to say this one hit me on so many levels I could barely contain myself and am now on my 4th viewing . And as far as the compliments they are all well deserved and may after thinking about it be a bit of an understatement . I’m not blowing smoke up your nose when I say this video : From the story – to the cinematography – to the editing – and right down to the placement of the background music [ I love the moment with the music box music as they drop a ring into what I assume is a clutch mechanism ] – this video is on the verge of perfection assuming perfection is attainable and is by far in my opinion the best video I’ve ever seen on the internet bar none .
My previous number one if anyone’s curious is Rafa’s video on master bicycle builder / artisan Dario Pegoretti called ” D’Aciaio ; A profile of Dario Pegoretti “.
