Cars from 1878 to 1920 - The forerunners
Panhard & Levassor Type A1
1898
Code 2221
Body style: landaulet
Panhard & Levassor archives held by the museum show that this magnificent landaulet was sold on 5 September 1898 to Mr E. Bouhey of Paris. The archives also state that a certain Philippe Bouhey, also of Paris, took delivery of another car from the same firm. It looks like the Bouhey family was rather fond of Panhard & Levassor automobiles.
The body was designed by well-known coach-maker Binder, who had become famous for luxury horse-drawn carriages in the 1820s and 1830s. The automobile was not, in fact a death knell for the firm’s activities, because it provided bodywork for the best-known makes of car for several decades.
The engine still featured a hot-tube ignition: a platinum tube bolted to the cylinder head and heated with a petroleum burner. The system was soon phased out, because it took a long time to start and could be blown out by the wind or even set fire to the car.
This engine was developed by Panhard, which was new for the firm, because previous models had Daimler engines. The German company had been the first manufacturer to produce fairly small and relatively reliable engines. As this early collaboration shows, partnerships between European carmakers go back to the very start of the industry.
This model gives a lovely example of the transition from horse-drawn carriages to automobiles. The term “landaulet”, which refers to a small coupé with a partially folding top, is borrowed from a type of horse carriage.
