1925 Voisin C5 Faux Cabriolet
Coachwork by Carrosserie Besset
Chassis no. 2770
Engine no. 2968

Gabriel Voisin was perhaps France's greatest aviation pioneer. In 1907 he built the first practical aeroplane capable of leaving the ground under its own power, and his Avions Voisin company was the first mass producer of aircraft in the world. But the end of WWI in 1918 brought a halt to Voisin's aviation ventures and forced him to look elsewhere to provide employment for his workforce.
After experimenting with motorised bicycles and a light two-seater economy car, Voisin decided to produce an automobile that would be unrivalled for prestige, comfort and speed. Developed for André Citroën from whom Gabriel Voisin purchased the design, the resulting Knight sleeve-valve-engined 4.0-litre Voisin M1 appeared in 1919. It was one of the first truly modern cars to be delivered after the Armistice and in 1920 was re-designated 'C1' in honour of Gabriel Voisin's dead brother Charles, though the mechanical specification remained the same. A special version took part in speed trails and hill climbs to demonstrate the speed and economy of the Voisin chassis, and in 1921 a C1 chassis taken straight off the production line and fitted with a skimpy aluminium body, beat the legendary Blue Train from Paris to Nice by six hours.
Voisin kept faith with the sleeve-valve engine, developing the design himself and extending it to the smaller models in the range. The work of his engineer, Marius Bernard, the first of these small Voisins was the 1,243cc 8CV C4 of 1921, which was later enlarged to 1,328cc (C4S) and finally to 1,550cc, in which 10CV form it was known as the C7. Although the C4 had only three speeds in the gearbox, this was more than compensated for by the sleeve valve engine's torque and the fact that lightweight coachwork was another of Voisin's obsessions. These attributes made the smaller Voisins highly effective competition cars, and one of them was driven by Dominic Lamberjack from Paris to Milan, beating the Orient Express to provide its manufacturer with much valuable publicity.
The centre of gravity's location and the role of aerodynamics were of the utmost importance to Gabriel Voisin, who, thanks to his prior aeronautical experience, was among the first to take them into consideration when designing an automobile. It is said that couturier Paul Poiret designed the first Art Deco-style fabrics specifically to be used in Voisin's Lumineuse-bodied models.
The Voisins' advanced technology, unconventional looks and necessarily high price made them particularly popular with royalty, artists and other celebrities. The Lumineuse style was favoured by some of the most famous artists of the day, including Rudolph Valentino, Maurice Chevalier and Josephine Baker as well as the radical modernist architect Le Corbusier. One of the first movie stars to achieve universal fame, Valentino owned several Voisin C5s like that offered here. Manufactured between 1923 and 1928, the C5 was powered by a 4.0-litre four-cylinder Knight engine producing a claimed 100 horsepower, which was good enough for a top speed of around 78mph.
Chassis number '2770' carries faux cabriolet coachwork by Besset of Annonay, France, a coachbuilder that specialised in bodying quality makes, most notably Berliet, before concentrating on bus bodies. The car was found in an un-restored condition in a village in France (photograph) and was completely restored in Switzerland over a period of several years (1975-2006).
A unique detail of this particular car is the 'Toit Isothermic' double roof that affords ventilation of the interior, both front and rear by means of adjustable shutters, a precursor of modern air conditioning! Also noteworthy is the servo for the brakes (in 1925!). One of three Voisins owned by the lady vendor, the C5 was purchased at Bonhams' Beaulieu sale in September 2014. Upon acquisition the car was registered in the UK and a major overhaul was carried out by Blakeney costing £9,300. Subsequently the magneto was overhauled and the brakes adjusted, as they were locking on full lock. The Voisin has been shown several times at Prescott where it was photographed in the company of the famous Lidia Bugatti Type 40 (photograph). It is remarkable to note the difference in size, notwithstanding that they are able to reach similar speeds. Described by the vendor as in very good condition, the car is supplied with a V5C registration document, recent bills for maintenance, and an album of photographs of the restoration.
A rare survivor of a marque responsible for some of the most original cars of all time, this rare C5 is, in many respects, a perfect automotive expression of its legendary designer and engineer's creative genius.