1902 Boyer 9HP Two-Cylinder Rear Entry Tonneau

1902 Boyer 9HP Two-Cylinder Rear Entry Tonneau

Noé Boyer was one of the many pioneering constructors of automobiles operating in France in the immediately pre and post 1900 era, which was not unreminiscent of the 'dot-com' times of the late 1990s/early 2000s in the tech industry. Based in the Paris suburb of Suresnes which would become home to companies such as Darracq, literature suggests that he began in engineering as early as 1895, and by the turn of the century was building combustion-engined tricycles which were quickly becoming ubiquitous in France.

By 1898 there was already some consolidation in the market, and Boyer merged his interests with Gladiator and Clément. This concern would notably build light voiturettes and quadricycles marketed under the Phébus name in the UK. For a short while the Boyer name was mothballed, but it re-emerged in 1902 with a new concern, Boyer et Cie. and started to produce a series of voiturettes in the common idiom of the day, utilizing some of the proprietary power plants provided by the Parisian based Aster and De Dion Bouton companies among others. For a while Boyer cars were marketed here in the U.S. by noted French automobile agent Kenneth A. Skinner of Boston.

A two-cylinder Boyer car was marketed from 1902 of which this is believed to be the sole surviving example. It carries a powerplant which was another bought-in component, being made by E. Buchet who were long time suppliers of potent engines for competition tricycles among other vehicles, which by his own marketing were the 'strongest, fastest and lightest'! It is notable for its push rod mechanical overhead exhaust valve, which for the day is relatively advanced, and for Buchet was an early water-cooled version. In all other respects it mirrors the aesthetic design of the now frequently copied Système Panhard, with piano pedals, 3 speeds and serpentine radiator, albeit with direct, rather than chain drive.

Descriptions & pictures by bonhams