Renault Dauphine

[termietermite]

I'm having a slightly mad moment.  Now that I'm over here, I think it would be rather nice to have a little French classic car to potter around the place in at weekends, and maybe take to local concours (of which there are rather a lot round here.)  I'm not talking anything posh and it can't be too complicated to run/maintain.  I saw a nice little Dauphine for sale at the weekend.  It's a long shot but has anybody on here got any knowledge of them?  Ever run one?  Opinions welcome.

[mgmark]

No idea on the ease of maintenance/driveability, but they are decidedly Gallic and have the engine at the wrong end of the car - seems to be bags of information on these sites which might help in your deliberations:

http://www.dauphstock.org/
http://dauphinomaniac.dauphstock.org/

Best suggestion I can make is to take one for a drive and see whether you like it and whether you suit it.  If the answer to both is yes, then consider one further - if not, then look elsewhere as there's nothing worse than being saddled with a car that, on reflection after the first flush, you neither like nor enjoy driving.  Better to get one that always brings a smile to the face 

MG Mark

[Steve Pyro]

Can't say that I blame you Debs, I've always had a hankering for one of these -

[termietermite]

Me too Steve, but they are b pricey! 

Agreed, the Dauphine's engine is in the wrong place (a mate of Ian's managed to turn one round years ago and write it off!) but I don't really plan to fling it around - just pose in it!

[Fran]

Interestingly on one of the links under "proto" there appears to be a daupine modelled on the Spyker paintwork!!! 

F

P.S.  A friend of my mum's had one of these when I was very young and I thought that both she and the car were terrifically glamourous and exotic!!

[mgmark]

Can't say that I blame you Debs, I've always had a hankering for one of these -

Steve,

Pricey now maybe, but there's a true classic - the picture immediately brings back memories of the Great Escape scene at the cafe.  That, and of my dad and his 3 elder brothers who managed to "acquire" a Citroen Traction Avant during WW2, which they kept in a nearby lock-up, secret from their parents (at the time they were all aged between 12 and 17) for a couple of years, whilst they rushed around Hertfordshire in it, doubbtless using "acquired" petrol.  The "Dangerous Book for Boys" springs to mind.  Mind you, they also acquired large quantities of ammunition from storage facilities near the East Coast mainline and set them off near what is now the municipal dump near Welwyn Garden City.  The resulting fireworks did not lead to their discovery though - that happened when they decided to see what bullets did when you put one in a vice and hit the end with a hammer and nail.......

MG Mark

[wishy]

My Dad had a Dauphine in the late 60's.

From what I can remember they don't handle very well.and a full load seriously affects the ability to travel uphill!!!!!

But....they do have charisma!!!

[Andy Zarse]

My Aunt (Dad's sister) had an orangey coloured one when she lived in the South of France in the late Sixties and she regularly used to drive it back to the UK. It also regularly used to break down, usually somewhere exotic like an Alpine pass or the Walsall ringroad. Mind you, she loved all things French and even married a very dishy French yachtsman. Needless to say he turned out to be a moustachioed hoop-jumpered scoundrel. 

The Dauphine was an interesting vehicle I recall, though my Dad loathed it. The engine was in the "boot" behind the rear axle, which meant the weight ditribution was all to cock leading to potentially fatal oversteer, especially in the wet. Bear in mind it took Porsche five decades of hard work to overcome this basic design flaw in the 911 and to this day i reckon that car is a triumph of engineering over the basic design theory.

Steve is right, the products of Andre were generally superior to those of Louis. And Andre was such a wonderful showman too, the Eiffel Tower stunt was amazing. So if a Traction is out of the question, why not try a nice little Citroen Ami? Or I can't help feeling something from a production line located near Dunstable would be in order. A French Commer would certainly bring a little much-needed Entente Cordiale...

[termietermite]

Ah, there's a thought, Une Cammionette Virgule - not having much luck finding one on e-bay though!  I've been discussing this on another forum and the concensus certainly is - don't touch 'em - so I probably won't - if indeed, I do anything of the sort anyway.  4CV is another option and I've chatted to a few people who have run them with few problems so they seem a better bet.

[BigH]

I'm afraid my contribution on this is not worth a great deal, the only French car I've ever owned was a 2CV, - I'd owned some sort of V8 thirsty type thing just before that, and decided I needed to keep the fuel bills in check. I was commuting through Wandsworth one way system at the time, each day I used to roll the roof back put on some sunglasses and see how fast I could enter the traffic with Wagners 'Ride of The Valkyries' playing at number 11 on the stereo (may have been an 8-track...). It was good fun, but anything but reliable, it finally went to meet it's maker just south of J8 on the M25. Four up, with a payload of around 60 stones, it got slower and slower as I tried to steer it up that long grade approaching the Reigate turn off, - there was no way I was going to remove my foot from the floor, or get out of the fast lane. It ground to a dead stop, and started to smoke a lot, we pushed it onto the hard shoulder just in time to see it burst into flames, as we were all responsible citizens we ran away and hid in that Pub on Reigate Hill.
It was blue.
H

[Andy Zarse]

Debs, how do you fancy a nice Renault Caravelle? A chance conversation with my neighbour at the weekend and I've discovered his son has one for sale. It's not on the road at the moment, though largely complete, it need a respray as currently in primer. It's LHD by the way and it's located on a turkey farm near Horsham. He only wants a few hundred quid for it.

[termietermite]

I'll contact you when I get back from Spa, Andy.  I'll be around and about the UK from the end of next week, so I'll think about it.  Thanks for that.

[Leftie]

Can't say that I blame you Debs, I've always had a hankering for one of these -

The "Dangerous Book for Boys" springs to mind.  Mind you, they also acquired large quantities of ammunition from storage facilities near the East Coast mainline and set them off near what is now the municipal dump near Welwyn Garden City.  The resulting fireworks did not lead to their discovery though - that happened when they decided to see what bullets did when you put one in a vice and hit the end with a hammer and nail.......

MG Mark

My old bording school (Rhinefield House) in the New Forest just outside Brockenhurst use to be a SOE training base.  Us 'lads' realised that the cellar wasn't right dimentionally. So we attempted in our bordem to rearrange it. Well, FMWABP, on demolishing a small part of a wall, WE FOUND A F*CKING BIG ARMOURY!.

Stens, Brens, Mortars et all. My favourite was the Mk7 Lee Enfield except it was a bit big for me at the time (I was 13).

Yes we experimented in the 'lab' with vice & hammer and .303.  Scarrey or what!

The best bit (or should it be the worst, can't really remember) was taken some of these found 'items' onto the Sandys and playing an imaginary war. 

How can I put it? Sh1T happened and I wet myself. Yep, FN in the back of the neck by a very unpolite military person.

But looking back on the time, we must of scared one hell of a load of people.

No, we did not get expelled, but I was classed as the ring leader and was subjected to 12 of the best (not for the first time I might add!) in front of the whole school. I think they ought to bring back Corporal Punishment,

But hey, I was a Hero!  1963, what a year.

Whoops, I've gone off thread, sorry Debs

[Leftie]

Debs,

If it is in superb condition, take a chance.

It would be better with the Gourdino engine and suspension though and a lot more fun.

Whatever, but you will enjoy posing.

[Gilles]

Ah, there's a thought, Une Cammionette Virgule - not having much luck finding one on e-bay though!  I've been discussing this on another forum and the concensus certainly is - don't touch 'em - so I probably won't - if indeed, I do anything of the sort anyway.  4CV is another option and I've chatted to a few people who have run them with few problems so they seem a better bet.

Choice between Dauphine and 4CV is quite easy. I'ld choose the 4CV.

They both have rear engine but the Dauphine is more dangerous. You always have to have something heavy (tool box, cement bag,...) in your front boot if you want to stick to the road. But if you look for a sport-driving car, it's a good option.

The 4CV is more daily-usable. Here in France you can find almost every parts, some of them are refabrication. And you may experiment suicide-door !!!

The 4CV could be considered as the French Morris Minor if all of you across the Channel allow me to compare...