1923 Francon Type F1

Offered by Osenat | Lyon, France | November 12, 2023

Photo – Osenat

The Francon was produced by Truelle et Compagnie in France between 1922 and 1926. They were cyclecars – light runabouts. Beginning in 1923, they upgraded a bit with a larger, more modern engine. But modern wasn’t necessarily the company’s strong point. The earliest cars had wooden chassis!

This 1923 model has a two-stroke inline-twin of 664cc capacity. The water-cooled engine featured both cylinders cast in as a pair with aluminum pistons and a rated output of 14 horsepower. Top speed was 40 mph. The pictures are lacking, but apparently these had some kind of friction disc transmission?

This car was previously owned by a museum and was restored prior to 1994, when it was purchased by the current owner. Subsequent work was never completed, so the car has been a parked project for some time. This car has an estimate of $5,000-$7,500. Click here for more info.

1908 Sizaire-Naudin Type F1 8HP Sport

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5, 2016

Photo – Artcurial

Sizaire-Naudin was a French marque that existed between 1903 and 1921. The Sizaire name lived on for a few years after 1921 in a few different forms. The company was founded by brothers Georges and Maurice Sizaire and their friend Louis Naudin in Courbevoie.

The car features unique styling at the front. The engine cover has a cyclops-like design to it and the eight horsepower single-cylinder engine resides beneath. Microcars aside, single-cylinder cars (especially of this size) went out of favor by about 1904. Still, this car is capable of 49 mph.

Sold new in Nice, the car is as it would’ve been when it was new and has been restored as needed over time, with major work being carried out in the 1980s and around 2000. It’s a rare marque and a fine example that should bring between $70,000-$90,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $133,561.