VETERAN CAR GUIDE
and the German parts of the business initially made cars and commercial vehicles under licence from Amédée Bollée in 1897 with tube ignition and a complex transmission system involving primary belt drive and final drive by two sets of bevels . The French concern began production of the Turcat-Méry , with its two- and four-cylinder engine options , tubular radiators , flitch plate frames , and chain drive . The German business , at its Niederbronn factory , initially made a version of the single cylinder , belt-driven Belgian Vivinus under licence , before Ettore Bugatti arrived to design a four-cylinder , chain-driven car . There were two engine sizes : a 5305cc unit , variously called 20hp or 24hp , and a 7430cc , 24hp option . After Bugatti left the company in 1904 , no further cars were made in Niederbronn .
De Dion Bouton The partnership between the Comte de Dion , Georges Bouton and Charles Trépardoux was forged in the summer of 1882 , leading to the production of a wide range of steam vehicles . Motor tricycles and quadricycles followed , and by 1900 , ensconced in new premises on the banks of the Seine in Puteaux , De Dion Bouton was comfortably the largest producer of compact , lightweight , high-revving single cylinder engines , which it supplied to many other manufacturers . Rear-engined , two-seater voiturettes were launched in 1899 , followed by front-engined vehicles in 1901 that were equipped with more powerful engines , as passenger capacity expanded , including two twin cylinder options from 1903 . The use of expanding clutch gearboxes and Cardan shaft transmission was consistent across all models .
Decauville The Decauville company was based at Seine-et-Oise , France , and in 1898 it produced a small tubular-framed car powered by two 1.75hp De Dion Bouton engines on the same crankcase mounted under the seat , with a two-speed gearbox , called a voiturelle . The front suspension was independent , by a transverse spring and sliding pillars , and was the first known example of IFS on a petrol-engined car . There was no rear suspension . By 1899 , a water-cooled engine of 5hp had been installed , along with rear suspension and a three-speed gearbox . For 1900 , an 8hp in-line twin , 1416cc engine was placed in the front , with a round bonnet and dashboard radiator , and now there was a four-speed gearbox . This was followed by a model with a 2090cc , twin cylinder engine with a fully floating rear axle that achieved prominence because Henry Royce used several design features in his first Royce car of 1904 . Thereafter the company focused on twin cylinder 12 / 14hp and larger four-cylinder vehicles .
1904 De Dion Bouton
Deckert Henri Deckert initially promoted his Paris-based business in the 1890s as ‘ Transformation de Moteurs ’. He had a significant involvement in the development of power units for racing tricycles and quadricycles . He did this by increasing the size of the cylinder bore , or by lengthening the stroke of standard engines . The advertising literature indicates that from 1902 he variously produced 6hp single cylinder vehicles , twin cylinder cars of 12hp and 16hp , as well as a 20hp four-cylinder machine . Only one 6hp model is known to survive , and it is possible that Deckert re-badged or upgraded vehicles that were made by companies such as Lacoste et Battmann or Malicet & Blin .
Delahaye Emile Delahaye began manufacturing motor cars on a limited scale in the mid-1890s in Tours , France , and participated in the 1896 Paris-Marseille-Paris race in 1896 . The vehicle he used had certain characteristics of an early Benz , but the steel frame was tubular , and the tyres were pneumatic . Léon Desmaris and Georges Morane bought the business in 1897 , and gradually moved the production to Paris . Delahaye ’ s 6hp Type 0 was replaced with the Type OA in 1901 , and there were Types 6 , 7 , and 8 , each with horizontal engines . In 1902 , a vertical twin appeared , with a 12hp , 2194cc engine , and thereafter there were numerous engine upgrades , revised chassis lengths , and transmission arrangements . In 1904 , it was possible to buy a 5320cc , four-cylinder model .
Delaugère et Clayette In 1904 , Maurice Clayette joined the company of Delaugère , situated in Orleans , who were a longstanding family of carriage and wagon makers . The founder ’ s son and a great-nephew had built a threewheeled car in 1898 , and a four-wheeled one in 1900 . This used a De Dion Bouton engine , but by 1901
46 The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run