Lafont Spéciale (G.A.R.) Circa 1928

Chassis n°1 Engine n°18819 Type CST4 Gearbox n°3947 French registration number The birth of this Lafont Spéciale remains a mystery for the time being. That said, following a lengthy investigation and numerous testimonials, we have been able to put together the various pieces of the jigsaw and imagine what happened at the end of the 1920s. Emile Lafont was a key player in the G.A.R. (Gardahaut) adventure. The brand made a name for itself in the early 1920s by building cyclecars powered by Chapuis-Dornier, with a sporting vocation, and many GARs were entered in races, notably the Bol d'Or. Emile Lafont was an engineer and driver for GAR, and took part in many races with them until 1928. It was then that the company took a turn that it would never recover from. Mr Gardahaut decided to design his own engine and launch a new range of cars. But the company began to decline and closed its doors in 1934. Lafont, sensing that the deal was coming to an end, decided to leave in 1928. For his departure, he negotiated several chassis and Chapuis-Dornier 12-valve engines in order to build his own cars. He took part in the Armistice Cup in 1930 as an independent (not affiliated to a car manufacturer) and won the race. We can deduct from this that the car in the photo is one of his creations, with an angled chassis (a modified GAR chassis?). The first photo of the Lafont Spéciale that we can identify with certainty is from the end of the 1950s. At that time, the car was part of the Pozzoli collection, stored under the Montlhéry ring. It was used by a well-known Bugatti collector during his leave from the Algerian war. Pozzoli wrote about his two GARs, the Blue Elephant and the Lafont (see text), so it's highly likely that he mentioned our Lafont Spéciale, as it was fitted with a 12-valve at the time and belonged to him. Next we find an undated photo of our Lafont Spéciale, where time has unfortunately taken its toll... We can see the same plate number as on the photo from the 1950s, which leaves no doubt as to its origin. It is thought that the Chapuis-Dornier 12-valve had already disappeared by this time. Why and how did this car end up at the bottom of a field? This question remains unanswered. It was then recovered in the 1970s by a collector in Burgundy, who undertook a complete restoration, dressing it in bodywork inspired by the GAR B5 roadster, our man probably recognising in the car the special features of the GAR. Next came a collector in the South of France, who, intrigued by this counter-angled chassis, and it has to be said, because it was fashionable, fitted it with a bordino tip. He sold it over twenty years ago to its current owner, but after taking part in a few historic events, the car fell asleep at the back of the garage. So here's an opportunity to acquire a cyclecar with quite a history, and one that hasn't yet revealed all its secrets. The car was woken from its deep sleep in the proper manner and the engine is running perfectly smoothly, and the few kilometres we drove it gave us a lot of pleasure. The car still deserves the usual checks before setting off on long road trips. This G.A.R. Lafont Spéciale vice et versa is a real alternative for driving something different, and at a reasonable price compared to the other Bordino Pointes of the 1920s. Note the specific front axle of the second-generation G.A.R., used on some racing G.A.R.s. Emile Lafont after winning the 1930 Armistice Cup. The dashboard contains the essentials: rev counter, speedometer, clock and oil pressure. The Chapuis-Dornier CST4 1100cm2 on the admission side. Less advanced than the 12-valve model, it is also more reliable. Our example is fitted with a tailor-made exhaust pipe to gain a few more horsepower. The gearbox and pedal assembly. The clutch pedal has been modified to fit a starter motor. This photo, taken at the home of a collector in the Burgundy region, shows that the car still has its original bonnet, recognisable by the interruption in the bonnet louvres. The chassis plate shows the manufacturer's address, the chassis number and a Chapuis-Dornier engine number that does not match the current one. Perhaps this is the number of the 12-valve engine originally fitted! It is important to note that GAR made both straight and curved chassis, see Pozzoli Auto passion 1989. The special mounting of the leaf springs at the rear allows the car to be lowered as much as possible, leaving space for the axle to be positioned as low as possible.