1925 Donnet-Zedel G2 Saloon | Brightwells | Auction Ends: Wed 16th Sept

Rare and fascinating French Light Car; fully restored about 35 years ago and carefully used since; recent engine rebuild; VSCC papers; lots of history; find another one!

In many ways the 1920s were the most exciting decade in the history of the automobile. Unlike today’s market which is dominated by a tiny handful of corporate behemoths, all churning out basically the same identikit appliance, in the Roaring Twenties there were a plethora of ingenious small firms turning out a glittering array of wildly inventive mechanical contraptions that bridged the gap from the rudimentary ‘horseless carriage’ to rolling palaces like the Bugatti Royale.

Largely hand-made by skilled craftsmen, there was an outstanding variety of diverse machinery to choose from: V16 engines; electric motors; steam power; superchargers; fabric bodies; aerodynamic teardrop coachwork – you name it, and you could bet that someone made it.

Founded in 1914, Donnet cut their teeth making flying boats for the French Navy but, like many other precision engineering firms of the time, they diversified into the burgeoning automobile market following the acquisition of Swiss car maker Zedel in 1919.

By 1927 Donnet-Zedel ranked fourth in the sales charts of France, well ahead of the likes of Salmson and Mathis, trailing only Citroen, Peugeot and Renault.

Alongside a range of 2.5 and 2.1-litre six-cylinder cars, they also produced a smaller and more affordable Type-G designed by none other than Ernest Henry – best known for his superb Peugeot and Ballot designs – which became the backbone of the company’s success.

This had a simple 1,098cc four-cylinder side-valve engine mated to a four- rather than three-speed gearbox, unusual for a small car at the time. Rugged and reliable, it proved its worth on a 10,000km non-stop promotional adventure from Paris to Constantinople and back without carrying any spare parts.

In common with many of the smaller marques, Donnet-Zedel struggled with the economic fallout of the Great Depression and their success proved short-lived. Despite attempts at modernisation, including a prototype front-wheel drive car in 1931, they were ultimately swallowed up by the SIMCA conglomerate in 1934 to manufacture the baby FIAT under licence.

This pretty 1925 Type-G two-door saloon is well-known to Brightwells as the previous owner was one of our clients back in 2016. Prior to that it had belonged for many years to a French gent, J-P Bigot (the son of the architect in residence for the Palais de Versailles) who had fully restored the car in the late-1980s/early-1990s. There is a June 1987 invoice for an engine rebuild by Beauzon & Cie of Neuilly-sur-Seine with new pistons, bearings etc. which cost just under 8,000 Francs.

Our former client bought the car from M Bigot in 2014 and got it UK registered as BF 7073. Once back in England, the owner took stock of his new purchase and found that although in nicely restored condition, it hadn't been run for around 10 years, so considerable time was spent on the usual recommissioning needed after such a period off the road.

The winter of 2014 was spent attending to numerous small jobs including tidying the interior, fitting an SU carburettor in place of the original troublesome Solex and fitting a new Lucas dynamo (the original units are included in the sale). The magneto was repaired and the car was comprehensively rewired.

While all of this was taking place, Cameron Engineering of Malvern made a repair to the cylinder block, replaced numerous studs and overhauled the valves. Colwall-based Vintage Metal rebuilt the steering box. Finally, four new Michelin Bibendum tyres were fitted at eye-watering expense.

The car was then used regularly on VSCC events, proving to be extremely reliable and great fun to drive, flying through its MOT in 2015 and 2016 with no advisories recorded.

The current owner acquired the car in June 2017 and has continued to look after it well, as documented in various invoices on file. Work of note includes: radiator rebuilt by Cheltenham Radiators; magneto rebuilt by Ribblesdale Auto Electrics; track rod ends replaced; brake shoes relined; new clutch; carb rebuilt; new drive rubbers and fibre couplings; extra sound-deadening material installed etc. 

He also fitted a pair of original Scintilla rear lights that came from a Bugatti and are worth a small fortune. He also had a bespoke distributor conversion kit specially made for the car which has yet to be fitted but is included among the spares that accompany the vehicle.

The engine was also rebored and rebuilt by an ex-Lotus engineer with a new set of pistons etc, since when the car has covered fewer than 300 miles so it will need a further period of gentle running-in before the performance is exploited to the full. Although there is no invoice for this, there are photos showing the rebuild in process (see last photo).

The large and interesting history file includes a French registration carnet from 1950 when the car was owned by Albert Senange of Auxerre; more recent French registration document from Monsieur Bigot’s ownership; plenty of invoices; VSCC papers; period road tests plus much technical literature and marketing material relating to the marque. There are also some useful tips on starting and driving. 

As you can see in the photos, this rare and beautifully-appointed saloon is brimming with Gallic charm and will be warmly welcomed at VSCC Light Car events where it is sure to arouse a great deal of interest. We are told that it drives as well as it looks and it has certainly been starting promptly and running sweetly as we have moved it around on site, with healthy oil pressure.

Of the c.100,000 cars made by Donnet-Zedel, only a tiny handful still survive today so you are most unlikely to see another for sale any time soon, let alone as good as this one. An intriguing alternative to a humdrum Austin 7 or Morris 8, this fascinating French flyweight is on offer here at no reserve so the best bid takes it home.

Consigned by James Dennison – 07970 309907 – james.dennison@brightwells.com