Rétromobile (5th to 9th February this year) has certainly returned to its pre-COVID glory – and, if we were looking for a headlining theme, then Citroën did us proud, with a celebration of the 70th anniversary of the DS. and a wonderful display in the corridor between Halls 1 and 2 showing the exploits of the Citroën Kégresse half-tracks, including their 1922 first crossing of the Sahara. The Berliet Foundation never cease to surprise and delight with whatever gigantic truck they bring to their stand. This time it was a Purrey steam lorry – of which more later.
In this pictorial report we’ve tried to give a flavour of all these displays, and of the club, manufacturer and dealer stands that have something to fascinate, chat about or buy, for the impecunious enthusiast right up to the billionaires with a gap in their car collections.
We hope you enjoy our report. Please give us your comments – we’d love to hear from you.
The centrepiece of the Citroën DS 70th anniversary display
Citroën naturally replicated the famous display from the original 1955 launch of the DS, created as an ‘art piece’ to promote the ‘floating’ nature of its hydropneumatic suspension. In the original, the car was floated into position in a lake, on a platform assembled atop several small boats. Four adjustable stilts were driven into the lake bed beneath the car’s display position, after which the ‘balloons’ were positioned beneath each faired-over wheel-well. Photographer Pierre Jahan took his pictures from a high position to disguise the space between the balloons and the car. Finally, the colour negative was developed and the stilts were edited out of the final image by airbrushing a print. Here in 2025 there was, sadly, no real water.
1960 Citroën ID Confort
Introduced in 1956, the ID was a simplified version of the DS, without the DS wheel trims, with a simplified dashboard, a less powerful engine, mechanical rather than hydraulic gear change and clutch, and no power steering. Nevertheless, it retained the full hydropneumatic suspension of its more expensive sister car. This example is unrestored, with only 38,000 kilometres on the clock. The French do like their puns: DS is pronounced Déesse, for Goddess, and ID is pronounced Idée, for Idea.
1931 Bugatti Type 46 ambulance
Bugatti launched its ‘Petite Royale’, the Type 46, at the 1928 Salon. This 5-litre luxury car was an immediate success, 450 being sold within 24 months. This exampole from 1931 was transformed into an ambulance during World War II, and its alloy wheels were replaced by wire wheels. Although the rear of the body was opened up for its new role, the rest was left unchanged; it is the only Type 46 to retain its original bodywork.
The Type 46 with its stretcher-trailer.
1928 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A S
If the Type 46 Bugatti was a luxury car, then this Isotta Fraschini was perhaps at a level above. It is a Landaulet by Castagna that allowed three different froms of motoring: completely closed as a limousine, open at the front as a Town Car with the chauffeur exposed, and open at the back to give passengers open-air motoring. This is also the very special Tipo 8A S (Spinto) model, gaining the 7370cc dual exhaust, twin carburettor high compression engine. This car has had only three owners in 95 years, and has never been neglected. It is a multiple concours winner.
The Isotta Fraschini radiator mascot
Egli-Vincent
The Egli-Vincent is arguably one of the most beautifully motorcycles ever made. First built in the mid-1960s by the Swiss motorcycle racer Fritz Egli, these bikes with modern frames and the classic 1000cc Vincent V-twin engine continue to be made by the Godet company.
1952 C-Type Jaguar
There are many replicas of the glorious C-Type Jaguar; this one is real. Chassis XKC 018 was purchased new by Juan Manuel Fangio, it was raced in Argentina. This rapid C-Type has scored wins in modern classic racing at Goodwood, Monaco, Silverstone Classic and more.
1970 Mercedes-Benz C111/I
The first experimental C111 was built in 1969 and was fitted with a three-rotor Wankel engine; this is the 1970 C111/II with a more aerodynamic body and a four-rotor power unit, reputedly delivering 349BHP and capable of reaching 186mph.
1923 Citroën Kégresse K1
This year at Rétromobile, Citroën set up a magnificent display of the Kégresse half-tracks. This 1923 example, intended for civiol and miliotary use, was the first to be offered commercially by the Citroën Kégresse division after André Citroën had been convinced of the effectiveness of these vehicles and had bought the patents and all the designs. Note the flexible rubber tracks that gave the Kégresse its remarkable ability over all kinds of rough terrain.
1930 Citroën Kégresse P20
This shooting brake by Duval was built on a more powerful 2650cc six-cyclinder Citroën chassis. It was designed for hunting expeditions for large game in the Sologne region in the Centre-Val de Loire area of France.
1922 Citroën Kégresse B2
In 1922 Citroën made the first crossing of the Sahara by motor vehicle, in vehicles of this type. The feat was achieved only after 18 months of meticulous preparation, There were five vehicles in the expedition: three were ‘Raid’ type cars like this one, manned by two people and equipped with a machine gun, supplies, medicines, spare parts, firearms and a tent. Two were flatbed ‘Resupply’ vehicles, equipped with oil, fuel, grease, water, spare tracks, more spare parts and searchlights. The crossing was achieved in 20 days between 18 December 1922 and 7 January 1923.
1934 Lancia Astura
The Astura was a V8-engined car produced by Lancia in four series between 1931 and 1939. This example is a short-chassis 3rd series car from 1934 with a Viotti Gran Sport torpedo body. It has the larger 2973cc engine introduced for the 3rd series.
The narrow-angle block of the V8 Astura.
1969 Lola T70 Mk3B Chevrolet
This T70 was bought in 1969 from the Lola factory by the racer Barrie Smith. He raced it in Europe, Argentina and South Africa in 1969 and 1970, and scored victories at Crystal Palace. It has since been raced by some very distinguished competitors, such as Gerry Marshall and Ray Mallock. It then belonged to Richard Attwood and David Piper, who had it raced by a number of drivers. It has never had any serious issues and is one of the most original T70s in existences.
Three of the five surviving original Type 59 Bugattis
Full disclosure: this remarkable group of three original Type 59 Bugattis was on the stand for the launch of a new three-volume book on the car – and the writer of the first, technical, volume, and editor of all 920 pages, is a board member of the SAHB. On the left the pale blue car is chassis 59124, winner of the 1934 Belgian Grand Prix in the hands of René Dreyfus and later raced by the Hon. Brian Lewis. Next is chassis 57248, the ‘Roi des Belges’ sports car acquired by King Leopold III of Belgium in 1937 direct from the factory after success in sports car racing and since preserved in totally original condition. It won Best of Show at Pebble Beach in August 2024. Finally, the green car is 59121, raced by the factory and then sold to the gentleman racer Charlie Martin, and subsequently owned and raced by many distinguished owners.
The limited edition of the book, with metal slipcase by Marc Newson.
The renowned industrial designer Marc Newson CBE has created the metal slipcase for this limited edition of the book. Its combination of lightening holes and riveted construction evoke the unique characteristics of the Type 59 chassis and body.
Volume 2, covering every race entered by a Type 59 or its successors and derivatives.
Volume 2, the racing history, is seen here on the stand, also designed by Marc Newson, of the Ultimate Edition.
The Roi des Belges car being started up.
The Roi des Belges car was fitted in period with the more powerful Type 57G engine with larger valves and central magneto drive; hence the raised central section of the cam-drive tower, covering the central gear that runs the magneto at engine speed rather than at half speed, for a stronger spark. The twin upside-down Zenith carburettors under their protective gauze feed the Roots supercharger inside the frame.
1954
The Fiat 8V (or “Otto Vu”) was a v8-engined sports car developed by Dante Giacosa and the stylist Luigi Rapi, and produced by from 1952 to 1954. The Fiat 8V got its name because at the time of its introduction Fiat believed that Ford had a copyright on the name ‘V8’. Only 114 *V cars were made; it was not a commercial success but did well in racing. Apart from the differential, the car did not share any parts with the other Fiats; many parts were made Siata and they used them for their cars.
The Fiat V8 had a 70-degree V configuration, displaced 1,996 cc and was fitted with two twin-choke Weber carburettors. The car had independent suspension all round and drum brakes on all four wheels.
Only 114 of the high-performance coupés had been produced by the time the cars were withdrawn from production in 1954, but they continued to win the Italian 2-litre GT championship every year until 1959.
1902 Laurin & Klement BZ
In the autumn of 1902, Laurin & Klement (now known as Škoda) introduced its BZ motorcycle. Developed from its earlier A and B models, it was produced until 1904, with 690 examples built. Its single-cylinder four-stroke air-cooled engine displaced 331cc and produced 3 HP. It had no gearbox.
1937 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Special Roadster
The Mercedes-Benz coachbuilding works at Sindelfingen produced many dramatic bodies for its eight-cylinder cars – and this is a fine example. This one was created in collaboration between the Mercedes-Benz design studio and the customer, a wealthy car enthusiast in Canada. The rolling chassis was finished on 25 August 1937 and just two months later the body was finished and the car was delivered to Zurich, whence it was shipped to Canada. This is one of very few surviving original Special Roadsters.
1909 Purrey Type B
The large commercial vehicle on the Fondation Berliet stand this year was a 1909 Purrey steam lorry. In 1886, Valentin Purrey (1861 – 1928) built his first steam railcar in Barcelona to provide a regular service in the city. In 1890, he returned to his native Bordeaux region and built a factory which eventually covered 25 acres and employed 450 people. While continuing to build successful self-propelled railcars for urban networks in France and abroad, he began working on motor vehicles in 1898. He presented the prototype of a steam-powered lorry with a payload of 5 tonnes, fitted with a 2.7-litre 120 x 120 double-action 2-cylinder engine, an ‘absolutely non-explosive’ water-tube steam generator, a 600-litre water tank and wooden wheels with metal tyres. It could reach a speed of 15 km/h and climb gradients of 12%. It used an average of 5.7 of coke and 20 litres of water per km. In 1909, the Raffineries Say ordered 34 Purrey lorries to replace its 400-horse livestock and wagons : 16 x 10-tonne units and 18 x 5-tonne units. It was the first fleet of motorised industrial road vehicles in the world.
The steam generator.
The steam generator comprised a lower tank containing water connected by zig-zag pipes to the upper tank containing water and, above it, steam. The pipes were enclosed by the firebox.
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