STEAM CAR WARMS UP BUYERS AT RETROMOBILE: by Michael Rose
|
|
|
|
Gary Evans,
Monday, March 12 2007
|
Page 3 of 4  The following year one of these quadricycles was driven alongside a cycle race in the Bois de Boulogne area of Paris. In 1888, a race for mechanically propelled vehicles was organized from the west of Paris to Versailles and back. Although, only two vehicles took part it was part of the process of proving that that autos could become viable means of transportation.
Racing was used by many early manufacturers to prove that their cars would hold up. Georges Bouton used a single seater tricycle in this race, while de Dion again drove a quadricycle with Trépardoux as his fireman. He took first place, covering the 20-mile (31 km) course at an average speed of almost 16 mph (25 kph). Years later, looking back on this event he said, "that's not so bad at all for the period.” By this time the name De Dion, Bouton & Trépardoux had been adopted for the business and the workshops were relocated from an address in the rue des Pavillons to 12 rue Ernest, both were in Puteaux close to the River Seine. The firm had appointed Fernand Mérelle as the exclusive sales agent for its products. At the 1889 Universal Exhibition - the focal point of which was the Eiffel Tower, specially constructed for the occasion - De Dion, Bouton & Trépardoux exhibited its boilers. Mérelle showed a variety of the firm's steam vehicles, for which a silver medal was awarded. Also at the show were the petrol-engined cars of Benz and Daimler, while Armand Peugeot exhibited a steamer designed by Léon Serpollet. The Exhibition was in part a centenary celebration of the Revolution of 1789, but few recognized the revolutionary nature of this small display of motorcars. The specific history of the vehicle sold by Christie’s is not known. But the following review of the details that are known gives us some insight into the detective process that auctioneers such as Christie’s employ to determine the provenance of items it offers for sale. Letters with the vehicle date back to 1953 from the current owner's family, while documentation with it confirmed registration for road use in 1957. Since the mid-1980s, it has been on exhibit at the Musée de la Sarthe at Le Mans. Documentation exists recording that the boiler received a detailed inspection by a specialist firm in 1958. It was tested to a pressure of over 250 pounds per square inch (18 kg cm ”), well above its working pressure of 170 psi (12 kg cm ”), and the appropriate certification was issued. Interestingly, the certificate notes that the boiler had last been tested in December 1931. It was’t possible to establish beyond doubt the precise age of this De Dion, Bouton & Trépardoux steamer. The maker's plate riveted to the boiler is stamped 3.165, but the significance of this number couldn’t be resolved. The plate also carries the rue Ernest address, which means that the vehicle is not one of those made when the factory was in the rue des Pavillons. However, the precise date of the move from this location to the rue Ernest isn’t known. Various sources give the year as being 1887, 1888 or 1889, so the vehicle is not of an earlier date than that covered by about a three-year period. There is also on the boiler a plate as required by a French government decree of April 1880, giving the working pressure of the boiler and the date when it was tested. The stamped figures read 5.9.91, which is taken to mean the 5th September 1891. Some think that when a test plate was first fitted to a boiler no date was required on it; this only happened once the boiler was tested at the required five-year intervals if the vehicle continued in use. In this case such a view conflicts with the evidence of the address on the maker's plate, so Christie’s thought that a circa 1890 date seemed reasonable until they could investigate the matter further. When inspected recently the vehicle was found to be complete in all respects, including not only the major components but also the various gauges, taps, drain-cocks, levers large and small, controls, and components. Both the boiler and the water tank appeared to be in good order as far as it was possible to check, and in neither instance was there any evidence of corrosion. There is some surface rust on exposed steel components such as the transmission rods, whilst the seat cushions and the woodwork are somewhat distressed. However, considering that the vehicle is approaching 120 years of age, it is in remarkably good condition. A reasonable number of steam carriages from the second half of the 19th century survive, but they are almost all in National museums or similar institutions and are not in anything like running order. The number of surviving De Dion, Bouton & Trépardoux steam vehicles are few and again they are mostly in museum collections. An 1885 front-wheel drive carriage is at the Le Mans museum; the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris houses a similar vehicle to that offered here but of tricycle pattern; and a lightweight tricycle is on display at the Musée de l'Automobile de Vendée. There is a later, larger, four-wheel vehicle in the collection at Compiègne but this is probably a De Dion Bouton, dating from the period after Trépardoux left the original business in 1893. The one other known quadricycle is in private ownership in England (see the accompanying video). Several years ago we had the chance to meet the owners of this vehicle and see it run. The vehicle Christie’s sold is a rare example of one of the earliest products of a business that had a significant impact on the early days of the automobile industry. It represents the transition between the large steam carriages of an earlier period and the true steam cars that many thought at the time would power the automobiles of the future. This quadricycle's completeness and condition is such that one could dream that it would only take an hour or two to add fuel and water and then light the fire and the vehicle would be in running order. It will need a thorough and comprehensive overhaul and require a boiler certificate before it can be taken out on the road, but the new owners should think about driving this marvelous piece of history.
|
 |
|
