"Jonee" (Jonee)
09/18/2017 at 12:42 • Filed to: None
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"Jonee" (Jonee)
09/18/2017 at 12:42 • Filed to: None | 10
| 25 |
I just spent a few weeks in Euroland touring WWI battlefields with my father. This was something he’s wanted to do his whole life and it was a really interesting thrill. I also spent some time in the Netherlands with Opponaut and LaLDer Jobjoris where we saw every cool car ever. More on that later. But, first I checked out this great little automobile museum in the city of Reims (pronounced like “France” without the “F” for some reason). Reims is in the Champagne region, so sees lots of tourists who go to drink bubbly, but it was also the home of the great Grand Prix circuit, Reims-Gueux, so has a great automobile tradition. And this museum reflects that. So here are some potato pictures.
You know you’re in the right place when there’s a Renault Estafette, a Trabi, and a DAF sitting out front.
This little guy is called a Rosengart, which is a marque I’d never heard of.
Beautiful early Peugeot 301.
1936 Panhard et Levossor Dynamic. Gorgeous piece of art deco design that my dad fell in love with.
I love the air-cooled boxer twin powering this SIMA-Violet.
1937 La Licorne, another fairly obscure early French marque.
There isn’t much cooler in this universe than a Citroën BX 4TC.
This is a Citroën concept mock up called the ECO 2000 from ‘84.
Autobianchi Bianchina, a gussied up Fiat 500 made famous when a gorilla drove one in a Pink Panther movie.
No museum is complete without a Citroën Visa.
CG 1200S, a SIMCA powered sports car built by coachbuilders Chappe Frères et Gessalin. It’s not an Alpine.
The MG powered Baumann.
A French mini Jeep called the Poncin built in 1992 with Renault power.
Hotchkiss-Willys fire Jeep.
Great collection of pedal cars.
The King.
Berliet fire truck.
Gordini powered Fournier-Marcadier.
The great Peugeot 104Z, big brother to my Citroën LNA (more on that later).
HOLY FUCKING SHIT A LIGIER JS2! This made my day.
Adorable little Panhard Junior.
Panhard Dyna, the fish face car.
Mochet CM125Y. One of my favorite microcars. Built by the man who invented the recumbent bicycle.
Vespa 400
New Map Solyto, a primitive micro truck that was in production into the 70's.
The infamous Mini Comtesse, a teeny “sans permis” car from the 70's that could be driven without a driver’s license. It’s a 3-wheeler, but if you notice, it has little training wheels to keep it from tipping over.
This is the Mini Comtesse Super, an actual 4-wheeler.
This is a bare stainless steel Peugeot 504 TI ordered special by a steel and stainless steel sheet supplier. Over 300,000 kilometers and no rust.
Panhard Dyna X.
This is an insane custom built car called the Radovich that was completed in 1958. It sits on a Peugeot 403 chassis.
There was also a great collection of model cars of both tin and diecast.
If you’re ever in Champagne, I highly recommend a visit to this place. It’s a fascinating collection.
Cé hé sin
> Jonee
09/18/2017 at 12:57 |
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I’ve actually been to Reims but for some reason the museum escaped me!
Interesting that the Visa has modern plates - it must be still usable.
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Jonee
> Cé hé sin
09/18/2017 at 13:00 |
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I had no idea the museum existed, either, but it was listed on one of those tourist maps of the city, so I figured why not check it out. I was blown away.
Maybe an employee has a great parking spot.
RallyWrench
> Jonee
09/18/2017 at 13:09 |
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A JS2 and a Bagheera!! What is that red coupe next to the Bagheera? Wonderful and eccentric selection of cars!
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Jonee
> RallyWrench
09/18/2017 at 13:28 |
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That, I believe, is an early Bagheera with a funny nose. Incredibly eclectic collection, but that’s Europe for you.
I love the way all the panels are warped on the Matras.
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RallyWrench
> Jonee
09/18/2017 at 13:36 |
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I wondered if it was a modded Bagheera, but it looked a bit off. Looks like they must have changed a few things, it just looks... different. The windshield corners are too round, the rear window not quite right. Man, now I’m curious! They never really raced Bagheeras, but I I know they had planned to. Wonder if this was a development car for a rally version, or just a preproduction prototype? Time to go Deep Google.
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Jonee
> RallyWrench
09/18/2017 at 13:43 |
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Yeah, I wish I had photographed the info sign for that one. It didn’t dawn on me how weird it was until I looked at the pictures. Perhaps the Dutchie knows more. It’s pretty seek looking compared to the other car.
SpeedSix
> Jonee
09/18/2017 at 13:47 |
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That JS2 really is lovely. I think it’s the first time I’ve seen one with black lower paint, and it works quite well, like a DeTomaso Pantera.
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Jonee
> SpeedSix
09/18/2017 at 13:49 |
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Yeah, it does look Pantera-esque with the black trim. It was quite sharp in person. I love those double headlights behind the plexi.
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RallyWrench
> Jonee
09/18/2017 at 13:57 |
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Hmm...A modified Murena? Still not quite right, but there is some relation. The museum car looks like a hybrid of Bagheera and Murena. I’m going to solve this, damnit!
Jobjoris
> Jonee
09/21/2017 at 05:47 |
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YES! Finally!
It really is a bit like the Hommel collection: awesome but all packed terribly close to each other!
That Radovich looks great, good to see Lenny making a cameo there. There is a connection between CG and Alpine btw, at first Jean Rédélé got his bodies at Chappe Frères et Gessalin. We missed another thing: I didn’t introduce you to the guy owning the Saab parked behind our house, right? He’s the one having a Bianchina as well!
I’m adding this musée for a future French visit!
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Jobjoris
> RallyWrench
09/21/2017 at 08:40 |
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It’s a modified 530. The Matra Diebold.
I do feel Matra looked a bit to it when designing the Bagheera.
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Jobjoris
> Jonee
09/21/2017 at 08:41 |
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Mystery solved, check reply to Tucker’s ;-)
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Jonee
> Jobjoris
09/21/2017 at 22:41 |
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Ah, right. Diebold. I knew that and forgot. Definitely the precursor to the Bagheera. I love the circles on the nose.
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Jonee
> Jobjoris
09/21/2017 at 23:11 |
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Yeah, they stuffed as many cars as they could in there. But, they’re all great cars, so I like it. Quantity + quality. Lenny was pretty fascinated by the Radovich, so I had to make sure he got in there. Oh, yeah. We didn’t visit the Bianchina guy. I would have liked to have seen it even if it is in pieces. I saw a lot of those on the trip. Did we see two?
It’s a must see. Some of the cars are nicely worn in like at Auto World.
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RallyWrench
> Jobjoris
09/22/2017 at 03:00 |
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Of course you know it! There’s definitely some hint of the Bagheera, especially the U8 prototype with that wheelbase! Even a bit of Murena there at the front and windshield. Very cool, thanks!
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Jobjoris
> Jonee
09/22/2017 at 04:58 |
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Just prepared for extra rally lights with all those circles! ;-)
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Jobjoris
> RallyWrench
09/22/2017 at 04:59 |
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And it’s better than a Ferrari. Not twin tail lights. THREE!!!!
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Jobjoris
> Jonee
09/22/2017 at 05:15 |
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If we just had a little more time (off). I definitely wanted to drop by at Franz’s to check on the 308/328/404. One thing I’d never skip though is hoonin’ that Reims track in a Duster!
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Jonee
> Jobjoris
09/23/2017 at 03:10 |
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Next year then we can do both. I wouldn’t mind renting another Duster. It’s getting a facelift next year, so I’ll need to check that out. And then Lenny won’t be dragging me down.
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Jonee
> Jobjoris
09/23/2017 at 03:12 |
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It needs some on the roof to balance things out.
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Jobjoris
> Jonee
09/23/2017 at 11:07 |
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And neons.
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Jonee
> Jobjoris
09/24/2017 at 14:00 |
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And lasers.
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Jobjoris
> Jonee
09/24/2017 at 16:44 |
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Just at the front?
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Jonee
> Jobjoris
09/25/2017 at 22:23 |
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It’ll be made of lasers.
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Jobjoris
> Jonee
09/26/2017 at 03:56 |
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The Wanke r l Tron Edition .