Petit Laboratoire: build your own Voisin

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You rarely come across a bare Voisin chassis. A chassis that might allow you to recreate one of the most mysterious Voisins ever built? That is almost unheard of. In the Highest Bid section we found exactly such a C7 chassis. Its current owner bought it with one objective in mind: to recreate a Voisin C10 "Petit Laboratoire", an experimental racing car of which, as far as is known, no complete example has survived.

Very little is known about the C10. According to Automobiles-Voisin.fr, it was an experimental car that competed in several races during the summer of 1924, including the Grand Prix of Lyon.

The C10 "Petit Laboratoire" is generally regarded as an experimental racing car of 1924, designed by Gabriel Voisin and André Lefèbvre as the successor to the revolutionary Voisin Laboratoire C6. Although its nickname suggests it was merely a scaled-down C6, it was in fact an entirely new design with a different wheelbase (approximately 2,890 mm according to the available documentation) and a distinct body shape. Its unmistakable aviation-inspired features remained, however: an exceptionally low profile, excellent weight distribution and a streamlined fuselage-like body. It also retained the small propeller mounted ahead of the radiator, which drove the water pump.

The engine appears to have been a unique 1,550cc four-cylinder unit developed specifically for this prototype. Production is believed to have been limited to no more than a handful of cars, and no complete C10 is known to exist today.

That was precisely the reasoning behind the purchase of this chassis. The C7 shares almost exactly the same wheelbase as the C10, while its engine provides a logical basis for such a recreation. The project, however, never progressed: the correct engine was never found, and the chassis is now being offered for sale once again.

According to the seller, the chassis is in good condition, rolls and steers well, and provides an excellent starting point for a special. Whether that becomes a C7, a C11 or perhaps even the streamlined C10 is entirely up to its next owner. Just as Gabriel Voisin intended, this chassis can once again become a rolling laboratory for new ideas.

With a reserve price of just €2,000, it strikes us as an extraordinary bargain—and a unique opportunity to become the owner of a Voisin.

For more information or to place a bid, please visit the listing here. Bidding closes on 12 July at 10:00 (GMT+1).

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