Lovely photo Richard. I can't remember whether I ever asked about an article for a newsletter??? Great restoration story.Here is my finished project, finally with tags after 11 ½ years of paperwork.
For the Dauphine fans...
- Thread starter 56 Fregate
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Oh my goodness, I want this sweet little Dauphine 
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Of course you do.Oh my goodness, I want this sweet little Dauphine
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There's been a new Ferlec control box for sale on Ebay too!A very interesting car, but NOT a 1962. The diamond tag and the body tag are from a late 1961 Dauphine Gordini (along with the engine lid hinges). Most of the car is likely early 1958 - based on the demister not going the entire length of the windscreen and on the first several digits of the engine number. There was never a Gordini ferlec either. It is obvious that the tags have been changed, they should at least have tried to hide that!Oh my goodness, I want this sweet little Dauphine
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Yes, the big pk screws on the diamond plate doesn't do well for hiding the fact. But really, anyone that knows anything about the Dauphine could see very quickly that it wasn't as described. Someone unfamiliar with the model would end up disappointed.
I still love it though and would happily have it in my garage
I still love it though and would happily have it in my garage
Yes, incorrectly described and far from original but that doesn't mean it wouldn't be nice to have. Go and look at vintage Bentley advertisements - lots of very un-original modified cars selling for heaps. That said, I'd bypass that Dauphine and look for another.Yes, the big pk screws on the diamond plate doesn't do well for hiding the fact. But really, anyone that knows anything about the Dauphine could see very quickly that it wasn't as described. Someone unfamiliar with the model would end up disappointed.
I still love it though and would happily have it in my garage
One of our nicer local 4CVs is clearly a bitsa, but done very well and most people wouldn't ever pick it.
Taken in North Wagga Wagga in 1960s.
The colour scheme reminded me of the test of a twin choke carburettored Dauphine in Wheels, Nov57.
I see it was a spider wheel car, so Mr Kleinig got onto it quite quickly! Reading it, you realise what an improvement the Dauphine was over the 4CV.
If you want to read an immoderate rant on the virtues of the Dauphine, just read Gordon Wilkins' report published in April 56 Wheels magazine!
He seemed to like it.
Thanks for that article.Here's one I spotted in south-west France in 2017.
That's patina for you! Worth salvaging the rear window for our Goggomobile Dart friends of course.
I didn't know they shared parts with each other, I thought it would be too big for a Dart. You learn something new everyday!
I guess when Bill Buckle made the Dart, it was the one screen close enough to the right width he was thinking of, and not a bad shape at all. Amazing isn't it!!
Maybe the Dart width was designed around the size of the Dauphine rear screen? Someone will know.
I thought that the attachment would have generated more comment. Perhaps I should have included a few 'teaser quotes'?
".... one of the best handling small closed cars, sports or touring, ever built'
"I found that nothing on wheels that could keep up with the Dauphine. Works drivers in the new Fregate with the enlarged engine, tried and gave it up as hopeless; Corsicans, in Citroens with four and six cylinders, tried and fell back one mile in five."
"Most rear-engined cars have inherent oversteer, which makes them tricky to handle on wet and slippery roads, but in the Dauphine there is just enough to help the tail round on sharp bends, without causing complications during a swerve on the straight, or when the car goes into a downhill bend too fast."
"...... The result is an advance in handling which one would not have thought possible".
The Dauphine has become a bit of a Cinderella it seems to me, sandwiched between the iconic 4CV and R8 models. Shame, because they are lovely and effective. I know a bloke who did a huge mileage on one just this year.
The reason for my post was to try to generate discussion. I thought that my original post 'went through to the keeper' without many people reading the attachment. However, I think that the actual Gordon Wilkins review is far too fullsome in its praise.The Dauphine has become a bit of a Cinderella it seems to me, sandwiched between the iconic 4CV and R8 models. Shame, because they are lovely and effective. I know a bloke who did a huge mileage on one just this year.
Yes, the Dauphine has been a bit of a Cinderella. To me, the body design is aesthetically superior to both the 4CV or the R8, yet when I park my Dauphine beside a 4CV, everybody looks at the 4CV and ignores the Dauphine. Somehow the 4CV 'cute factor' wins every time! And the R8? I find the R8 body design attractive and I'm aware how much of a major advance the suspension, engine and gearbox was over the Dauphine.
However, in some ways, an R8 is too capable. In many circumstances, I can drive my Dauphine very hard without much risk of being booked. I couldn't do that to the same degree in even a standard R8. I get pleasure out of driving hard. To me, the Dauphine represents a 'sweet spot' in having just enough performance to keep up with modern traffic and be practical on long trips, without calling for as much restraint as I would need to exercise in an R8 or other car of higher performance.
I got a speeding ticket in a 40HP Dauphine in 1982. I also crashed my 1300 cc Dauphine (a different car) in 1982 and swore off them at that point. Despite having the track rods and R10 drivetrain, lurid oversteer was too easily found, and I found it! Still love how they look. My late father bought a new one in 1960.
Yes, I agree with all of that. And the Dauphine is the best 'looker' by miles. Just lovely lines.
The early R8 tests (Pomeroy's, for example) are a bit too fullsome too IMHO. Not inaccurate but as a long term owner not always quite on the mark. Mind you, it is easy to overlook how good an R8 would have seemed in 1962 or a Dauphine in 1956!