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 Four years after the Leon Bollee voiturette appeared, Leon Bollee superseded it with a 4-wheeler with independent front suspension by double transverse leaf springs.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

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Stoewer

D, 1899 – 1939

(1) Gebrüder Stoewer, Fabrik für Motorfahrzeuge, Stettin, 1899 – 1916

(2) Stoewer-Werke AG vorm. Gebr. Stoewer, Stettin, 1916 – 1939

The Stoewer car factory developed out of the Stoewer ironworks and was among the pioneers of the German car industry. After manufacturing motor cycles, tricycles and quadricycles for two years, Stoewer turned to cars in 1899. The first Stoewer car had a rear-mounted 2-cylinder engine. 4-cylinder Stoewer cars followed in 1901, and electric Stoewer cars were also produced. Best known were the 2-cylinder Type T Stoewer car (2.280cc and 3/12PS), the 4-cylinder Stoewer P4 (3.052cc and 11/22PS), the Stoewer G4 (1.500cc and 6/12PS) and the 6-cylinder Stoewer P6 (8.820cc and 34/60PS), evolved in the 1905-1907 period all Stoewer cars with shaft-drive. The Stoewer B1 of 6/16PS and the Stoewer B6 of 9/22PS which appeared in 1910 were also built by Mathis under licence. The G4 Stoewer car was the basis for the Stoewer B5, which Stoewer car in 1912 became famous by setting up a record at Brooklands with 67.7mph. The new range of Stoewer cars which appeared in 1913 was also based on successful earlier cars. They were the Stoewer C1 (6/18PS), Stoewer C2 (10/28PS) and C3 Stoewer car (6-cylinder and 19/45PS). Shortly before the outbreak of World War 1 the Stoewer car range was headed by the F4 Stoewer car with a 4-cylinder, 8.8-litre 33/100PS ohc engine. After the war an enormous Stoewer car appeared, the Stoewer D7, using a 6-cylinder 11.2-litre 42/120PS aero engine, as well as some conservative sv 4- and 6-cylinder Stoewer cars with rear wheel and transmission brakes. Front wheel brakes appeared on Stoewer cars in 1925. Stoewer introduced 8-cylinder Stoewer cars in 1928. These were the Stoewer Superior, Stoewer Marschall, Stoewer Gigant and Stoewer Repräsentant with engines ranging from 2-litres and 45bhp to 4.9-litres and 100bhp. The Stoewer car firm re-entered the economy class in 1931 with the V5, a front-driven Stoewer car with a V4 1.188cc engine, followed by the front-drive models R140 (1.369cc), R150 (1.488cc) and R180 (1.769cc). Another 8-cylinder was the front wheel drive Greif V8 with a 2.488cc engine, which was replaced by the conventional 6-cylinder 3.609cc Arcona Stoewer car in 1938. In 1934 the 1½-litre 4-cylinder Stoewer car and 2½-litre V8 Stoewer car were shown at the Brussels Salon by Monsieur Dewaet under the name D.S. (Dewaet-Stoewer). The Greif Junior was built under Tatra licence with an opposed 4-cylinder 1.474cc engine. It succeeded the Röhr Junior. In the middle of the range was the Stoewer Sedina with a 4-cylinder engine of 2.4-litres.

Production of private Stoewer cars was given up at the outbreak of World War 2 in 1939. The Stoewer car factory was destroyed during the war and production of Stoewer cars was not resumed.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; HON   

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