1920 : Bugatti delivers first 16-valve
James Ward's brother W.D. Packard at the wheel of a 1900 Packard automobileBugatti delivered its first 16-valve car to a customer in Basel, Switzerland. Bugatti, a Swiss-based luxury car company, was famous for its exquisite, powerful vehicles. In the 1920s and 1930s, the Bugatti car was a symbol of wealth and status, and its cars were equipped with massive racing engines. A bizarre footnote in Bugatti history: the renowned American dancer Isadora Duncan was driving in a 16-valve Bugatti when her trademark long scarf caught in the rear wheel of the vehicle, and she was instantly strangled to death.