La Marquise
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- For the guitar, see: La Marquise (guitar)
La Marquise, is, as of August 2007, thought to be the world's longest running automobile.[1] It is an 1884 model made by De Dion, Bouton & Trépardoux of France.[1] The car was built as a a prototype for future quadricycles, and named for the mother of Albert, the Count of Dion.[1]
In 1887, the Count of Dion drove La Marquise in an exhibition that has sometimes been called the world’s first car race, though his was the only car that showed up.[1] It made the 20-odd-mile Paris-to-Versailles round trip at an average speed of almost 16 m.p.h. The next year, he beat Bouton on a three-wheeler with an average speed of 18 m.p.h.[1]
Fueled by coal, wood and bits of paper, the car takes half an hour to forty minutes to build up enough steam to drive. Top speed is 38 miles per hour (61 kph).[2]
As the oldest car, it wore the number "0" in the 1996 London to Brighton Veteran Car Run.[1] The vehicle was sold at the 2007 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance for US$3,520,000.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f Duchene, Paul (2007-08-19). For Sale: ’84 Model. Runs Great. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2007-11-15.
- ^ Valdes-Dapena,, Peter (2007-06-28). World's oldest car for sale: Steam-powered 1884 car will be auctioned at Pebble Beach in August. CNN. Retrieved on 2007-11-15.
- ^ McDermon, Daniel (2007-08-21). The Classics of Pebble Beach, ‘07 Edition. The New York Times (blog). Retrieved on 2007-11-15.
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