Ariès

France, 1903 – 1938

SA Ariès, Courbevoie, Seine

The first Ariès motor vehicle was the delivery truck of 1903, which was powered by an Aster 2-cylinder engine. The Paris Salon of that year saw the first Ariès car, which was also Aster-powered. It was designed by Baron Charles Petiet. These Ariès were unremarkable machines, except for the feature of De Dion-type drive, the rear wheels being driven by shafts above a ‘dead’ axle. Not all Ariès were so furnished; some Ariès models were available with the choice of live axle or chain drive. By 1905, 4-cylinder Ariès cars as well as a twin were listed. Engines were still by Aster. 1908 brought a six and a narrow V4 engine of 60mm x 100mm, so compact that it was mistaken for a single and in 1910 Ariès catalogued the smallest 6-cylinder car in the world. All models had De Dion-type drive. The production of commercial Ariès vehicles took precedence over passenger cars towards the end of the decade. One Ariès for sale of the 1913 range, following the fashion, used a Knight double sleeve-valve engine.
After making Hispano-Suiza engines during World War 1, Ariès went back to cars, but still in a small way. Among the longest-lived models were the Ariès 15CV for sale and its close relative the Ariès 12CV, touring cars using a 4-cylinder sv engine with a cubic capacity of around three litres, and a 4-speed gearbox. From 1922 there was an Ariès Sport model with overhead camshaft and front wheel brakes. The smallest Ariès, the 5CV Ariès Type CC2 was worthy of more attention. It had a single overhead-camshaft engine of 1.085cc and (from 1924) four forward speeds. The 1929 Ariès CC4S sports model, with two plugs per cylinder, was a fast car. The Ariès 15CV was still there, but by the end of 1930 both it and the Ariès CC4S had gone, making way for the 1½-litre Aries CB4 and its successor the slightly bigger Ariès CC4N, current until 1934. The 4-cylinder, 10CV Ariès Super of 1934-1938 boasted a 2-speed rear axle.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; TRN

The information is written with the greatest of care. However, if you have any suggested amendments please contact us at office@prewarcar.com

Léon Bollee

France, 1895 – 1933

(1) Automobiles Léon Bollée, Le Mans, 1895 – 1924

(2) Morris Motors Ltd, Usines Léon Bollée, Le Mans, 1925 – 1931

(3) Sté Nouvelle Léon Bollée, Le Mans, 1931 – 1933

Leon Bollee was a son of Amédée Bolllée père, the most important pioneer of steam road vehicles in France. Leon Bollee, however, turned to really small petrol Leon Bollee cars. He was the first to do so, and therefore had to invent a new name for his Leon Bollee car of 1895 – he called it a Leon Bollee voiturette. This Leon Bollee car was a tandem two-seater 3-wheeler that was faster than any other petrol-engined vehicle on the road when the Leon Bollee car was working, thanks to a powerful 3hp engine and light weight, but the power unit was unreliable on the Leon Bollee car. The Leon Bollee car had a single air-cooled cylinder of 650cc and used hot-tube ignition. There were 3 forward speeds on the Leon Bollee car, with belt final drive. The frame was tubular. Four years after the Leon Bollee voiturette appeared, Leon Bollee superseded it with a 4-wheeler with independent front suspension by double transverse leaf springs. This Leon Bollee car had a single-cylinder, water-cooled engine. Unlike the Leon Bollee voiturette, this Leon Bollee car made no mark. The design rights were sold to Darracq, and around 1901 the name of Leon Bollee cars vanished. Meanwhile, the term voiturette had been taken up by the trade and public in general as the name for a small light car.

The Leon Bollee car reappeared in 1903 as an entirely normal, full-sized car in the more expensive class, backed by Vanderbilt money and designed for the American market. This Leon Bollee car was made in 28hp (4.6-litres) and 45hp (8-litres) versions, with four cylinders and chain drive, and led on to a 11.9-litre six Leon Bollee car in 1907, in which year the first shaft driven Leon Bollee car appeared. From 1909 there was also a small modern four, the Leon Bollee 10/14hp. The 1910 range embraced 9 Leon Bollee cars, including 2 of over 10-litres capacity. Electric lighting became available on Leon Bollee cars in 1913, but the Leon Bollee grew increasingly old-fashioned after World War 1 despite the introduction of ohv in 1922 on Leon Bollee cars and front wheel brakes in 1923. Late in 1924 Sir William Morris bought the Le Mans Leon Bollee car factory. From making a wide range of conservative French Leon Bollee fours, it turned to thinly-disguised products of Cowley, Oxford, the idea being to breach the French tariff walls from the inside. The first Morris- Leon Bollee had a 12CV 2½-litre 4-cylinder unit-construction engine made by Hotchkiss, the engine manufacturers controlled by Morris, but it had push-rod overhead valves and bore little evidence of its parentage. Not so the 18CV Morris- Leon Bollee car of 1928. This was a 3-litre straight-8 with single overhead camshaft that reflected Morris’ takeover of Wolseley two years earlier. Morris’ own new six of 1928 was mirrored in the 15CV 2.6-litre Le Mans product of 1929. The bodies for the Morris- Leon Bollee car were all made in France and were usually considerably more dashing and attractive than their British counterparts. Chassis of this Morris- Leon Bollee car were made in France, and all cars had a 4-speed gearbox. At one time, 50 12CV Morris- Leon Bollee cars were being turned out each week. However, Morris’ enterprise was not a success, and he discontinued it in the hard times of the Depression. A new syndicate was formed in September 1931 to sell the same range of cars under the name of Leon Bollee cars. This lasted for less than two years and few Leon Bollee cars were made.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; TRN

The information is written with the greatest of care. However, if you have any suggested amendments please contact us at office@prewarcar.com