You-You

Hull & Structure — Conservation Rebuild

During the initial assessment, the original hull planking was found to be deteriorated beyond repair, necessitating a conservation-grade rebuild. The team’s decision to proceed this way began with exhaustive documentation of the original hull. For Lines, Measurement & Re-Lofting, the boat’s lines were taken directly off the original hull to create a full offsets record, documenting the shape to within ±1 mm tolerances. Using those measurements, the boat was meticulously re-lofted to full scale so that the geometry, plank runs, frame spacing, and sheer could be replicated without any drift from the Bugatti original. A New Hull to Original Standards was then constructed using the same standards and practices as the original, replicating plank widths, frame spacing, fastening patterns, and construction details observed during documentation. The goal was not modernization, but a faithful reconstruction that retained the boat’s Bugatti character in structure, proportion, and surface. With the new hull completed, the Fitting Original Architecture phase ensured that the deck frame, coamings, bulkheads, and associated interior architecture were carefully fit into the new shell, maintaining original relationships, scantlings, and joinery logic established in the re-lofting process. Crucially, in the matter of Keel Provenance, the team uncovered an original Bugatti stamp concealed beneath multiple layers of coatings during paint removal on the original keel. That stamped section of keel was carefully cut out and inlaid into the new keel, preserving this unique factory mark as a visible, physical thread of provenance carried forward into the rebuilt structure.

Mechanical & Systems (with Leydon Restorations)

The systems work focused on returning all mechanical components to period correctness. Leydon Restorations managed the period Engine rebuild, including machining, balancing, and ensuring the correctness of case and cover finishes, as well as fasteners, all to Bugatti standards. Ancillaries such as the fuel, ignition, and cooling pathways were renewed with their original routing, though any modern safety materials, like hoses or clamps, were visually de-emphasized. The Controls—including throttle and ignition linkages—were returned to their correct geometry and finish.

Finish & Presentation

The final cosmetic program followed the practice of a coachbuilder: preserving tooling marks and any meaningful period craft, while actively avoiding “plastic perfection.” The resulting finish ensures that YOU-YOU looks and feels Bugatti, right where she belongs—on the water.