Bollée is a very important name in the history of French automobiles. Amédée Bollée made some of the first steam-powered automobiles from 1873 onwards. Léon, his son, began making petrol cars in 1893 and his Voiturettes are considered to be some of the best vehicles made before 1900.

The company lived on for a few more decades (Léon died in 1913). In fact, in 1924, British Morris Motors bought the company in order for Morris to enter the French market. However, Morris took the crisis of 1929 as a pretext to leave this partnership, which did not produce all the results he had expected, and a new company was reorganised under the name of Léon Bollée, which would operate until 1931.

The vehicle presented here is very hard to come by, as very few cars of this model were built, and to date, only two units are known to exist in working order: the one being auctioned here and another that has been preserved in France.

This car is particularly interesting because it was created by the master coachbuilder Henri Chapron (30 December 1886 - 14 May 1978), whose workshop, founded in 1919, was located in the Parisian suburb of Levallois-Perret. Chapron "dressed" many of the most prestigious cars of his time, including brands such as Hispano-Suiza, Delahaye and Talbot-Lago.

The car was on display in a French museum for some 40 years, until a Spanish enthusiast acquired it in 1997. Since its acquisition, it has been fully restored in Spain, with the exception of the painting, which has been preserved as it is the original painting of the period.

The mechanics have been completely redone including pistons, piston rings, seals etc. The transmission was overhauled, and a new electrical installation was carried out in specialised workshops.

The car's original clockwork works perfectly, although a modern, non-original pressure gauge and temperature clock were included. New interior upholstery, with quality materials. Restored, stripped and painted chassis and new chassis underbody timbers. It has five new tyres with white tread.

It is registered as a Historic Vehicle in Spain and in working order, although it has had very little use in recent years.

The car is in the province of Barcelona (Spain).This Classic Car is for sale on Catawiki. To have more information or to place a bid click on the "BID NOW" button.