Across London in an 1897 Panhard et Levassor

"Drive Cult" (drivecult) 11/08/2014 at 10:21 • Filed to: Veteran car, London

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Ever wondered what it was like to ride a car from the Edwardian era? We got to find out in the heart of modern central London.

There's a reasonable argument that the internal combustion-powered automobile is at its evolutionary peak. Cars such as the McLaren P1 and Ferrari LaFerrari have performance capabilities far beyond what can be used (legally) on the road, and future emissions laws will mean that car manufacturers will be forced to look for alternatives to the internal combustion engine.

Considering the car has only been around for about 130 years, this has been a very fast evolution, but what were cars like at the beginning of that journey? Drive Cult was recently given the opportunity to find out when we were given a short ride across London in an 1897 Panhard et Levassor, in advance of the car entering the 2014 edition of the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run.

In car evolution terms, the Panhard et Levassor is at about the same point as in the evolution of life when animals first began to leave the water and venture onto the land. The company was established in 1887, only two years after the first Benz Motorwagen was completed, and produced its first car in 1890 using a license-built Daimler engine. In 1891 they began to produce their own engines, and by 1895 their cars were beginning to gain some of the accoutrements that we take for granted in a car of today. Steering wheels replaced tiller steering - considered a safety upgrade, due to the possibility of being impaled on the tiller in the event of an accident! - and multi-speed transmissions using a clutch to change gear were introduced. They were also beginning to take the typical form of a car, too, with the engine at the front and the passenger compartment behind. However, chassis design was still very much inspired by horse-drawn carriages, with tall thin wheels being the standard.

This particular car features all of those items. The two front passengers sit in what are effectively large armchairs, and in the back there's room for two occupants or luggage on side-facing bench seats. Power is provided by a 2-cylinder engine producing 6bhp, transmitting its power to the rear wheels via a chain drive.

The day before the Veteran Car run, many of the cars entered are displayed at the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! in central London. The normally busy road is closed off and the veteran cars are lined up along the street, along with some other classic and modern cars, so the crowds can get really close to them.

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At the show I met up with Mathieu Planchon and friend of Drive Cult !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , both of whom would be driving the car on the run. Frédéric showed me around the car and as the event was drawing to a close asked me if I would like a ride in the car as they needed to take it back to their hotel in Hammersmith. As I doubt I will ever get to ride in a 117-year old car again, I was never going to say no!

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Read the rest on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

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ranwhenparked > Drive Cult 11/08/2014 at 17:56

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Forget Edwardian, 1897 is still the freakin' Victorian era, that car is old!