An intriguing Retromobile display of early Renault tanks and military vehicles includes the 1936 36 R ‘tracteur de ravitaillment’, a tracked tug, fully armoured, except for the open doors, meaning its occupants could have very easily been fired at by the enemy.
Rounding off the outstanding selection of unusual machines, a trio of pioneering mid-engined JPW sports cars, created by the accomplished French Grand Prix driver Jean-Pierre Wimille, are presented in a special Retromobile feature. Three of the surviving eight post-war Wimille ‘JPW’ sports cars built, the Citroen Traction Avant-powered 1947 01 prototype, plus two subsequent Ford V8-powered JPWs (02 and 03), are presented, alongside examples of the Bugatti, Alfa Romeo and Gordini Grand Prix racers Wimille drove. The late-1940s JPWs predicted the mid-engined, three-seater layout of the early 1990s McLaren F1; the Wimilles even featuring a central steering position.
Photography by Tom Shaxson.