Automobiles Darracq France was a manufacturer of motor vehicles and aero engines in Suresnes, near Paris, France. The enterprise, known at first as A Darracq et Cie, was founded in 1896 by successful businessman Alexandre Darracq.
In 1902, he sold his new business to a privately held English company named A Darracq and Company Limited, retaining a substantial shareholding and a directorship. He continued to run the business from Paris but was obliged to retire to the Côte d'Azur in 1913, due to years of financial difficulties that brought his business into very hazardous circumstances. He had introduced an unproven unorthodox engine in 1911 which failed, yet he neglected Suresnes' popular conventional products. France entered the First World War shortly after.
In 1916, ownership of the Suresnes business was transferred to Darracq S.A. In 1922, Darracq's name was dropped from its products and the business was renamed Talbot S.A.. Initially, its products were branded Darracq-Talbot and then just Talbot. The London parent company suffered a financial collapse during the Great Depression and in 1935, Talbot S.A. was acquired by investors led by managing director Antonio Lago.
History Automobiles Darracq et Cie A. Darracq et Cie was created in 1897 by Alexandre Darracq, who used a substantial part of the profit he had made from selling his Gladiator bicycle factory to build a new plant in Suresnes.Wise, David Burgess. "Darracq: A Motor Enthusiast who Hated Driving", in Northey, Tom, ed. World of Automobiles (London: Orbis, 1974), Volume 5, p.484. Production began in January 1898 with bicycle parts, tricycles and quadricycles, and a Millet motorcycle powered by a five-cylinder rotary engine. An electric brougham shortly followed. Also in 1898, Darracq et Cie produced a Léon Bollée-designed voiturette tricar.Wise, p.493.Wise, David Burgess. "Davis: The Grand Old Man of Motor Racing", in Northey, Tom, ed. World of Automobiles (London: Orbis, 1974), Volume 5, p.499. The somewhat old-fashioned voiturette proved to be a debacle: its steering was problematic, the five-speed belt drive was described as "a masterpiece of bad design", and the crude hot tube ignition further compounded its flaws. In the end, the £10,000 Darracq et Cie had paid for the design turned out to be a costly mistake.
In 1900, Darracq et Cie produced a vehicle designed by Paul Ribeyrolles.Ribeyrolles (Paul), 3 rue de Jourdain, Paris — né à Paris en 1874 — Ingénieur des usines Darracq et cie — Diplomé de l'Ecole des Arts et Metiers de Châlons. Franchising opportunities, 1911 It was a voiture legére with a single-cylinder engine. The car featured a shaft drive and a three-speed column gear change.
Accelerator Though larger it was remarkably similar to a current Renault design. Its notable innovation was the provision of a system to vary engine speed between 100 rpm and 2,000 rpm. This was accomplished by regulating the engine's ignition and its inlet valves. By the end of September 1901 they had sold more than 1,000 of these cars but with only 300 employees Suresnes must have been essentially an assembly business.
Opel Darracq In 1902, A. Darracq et Cie signed a contract with Adam Opel to produce vehicles in the German Empire under the licence, with the brand name "Opel Darracq".Wise, p.493. Wise does not mention the year or marque name. Setright, does not mention the year, either, and p.1586 says it was an four-seater. Opel soon moved on to building its own vehicles. James M Laux, In First Gear, the French Automobile Industry until 1914, Liverpool University 1976
A Darracq and Company Limited A. Darracq et Cie was sold as of 30 September 1902 to A. Darracq and Company Limited, an English company. Alexandre Darracq had a substantial minority holding. J S Smith-Winby was appointed chairman. Further capital was raised and large sums were spent on factory expansion, the Suresnes site was expanded to some four acres in extent, and in England extensive premises were bought.A. Darracq & Company Limited. The Times, Monday, Nov 20, 1905; pg. 13; Issue 37869
Darracq holder of six world speed records A. Darracq and Company Limited prospered. By 1903, four models were offered: a 1.1-litre single, a 1.3 L and 1.9 L twin, and a 3.8 L four. For 1904 models, Darracq abandoned flitch-plated wood chassis for pressed steel. The new Flying Fifteen, powered by a 3-litre four, had its chassis made from a single sheet of steel. This car was Alexandre Darracq's chef d'oeuvre. There was nothing outstanding in its design but "every part was in such perfect balance and harmony" it became an outstanding model. Its exceptional quality helped the company capture a ten percent share of the French auto market.
In late 1904 the chairman reported sales were up by 20 per cent though increased costs meant the profit had risen more slowly. But what was more important was they had many more orders than they could fill and the only solution was to enlarge the factory by as much as 50 per cent.A Darracq and Co. Limited. The Times, Saturday, Nov 26, 1904; pg. 16; Issue 37562 Twelve months later, the chairman was able to tell shareholders all the six speed records of the automobile world were held by Darracq cars and they had all been held more than twelve months and yet another had recently been added by K Lee Guinness.A Darracq and Co Limited, The Times, Saturday, Nov 18, 1905; pg. 17; Issue 37868
Società Italiana Automobili Darracq
As a separate venture from his role, as the head of A. Darracq and Company Limited, Alexandre Darracq established Società Italiana Automobili Darracq (SIAD) in Portello, a suburb of Milan in Italy in 1906, through a licensing arrangement with Cavaliere Ugo Stella, an aristocrat from Milan. The business did not perform well and Darracq shut it down in 1910.Wise, p.494. The business was subsequently acquired by a new partnership, Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili (ALFA), acquired the business, and in 1914 Nicola Romeo bought ALFA and later became known as Alfa Romeo.
Sociedad Anonima Espanola de Automoviles Darracq Alexandre Darracq also formed Sociedad Anonima Espanola de Automoviles Darracq in Vitoria, Spain in 1912, with a capitalization of 1,000,000 pesetas.
Cabs An order was accepted from a M. Charley for several thousand cabs to sell to franchised operators in major European and American cities. Darracq ordered 4,000 chassis frames and built a new factory beside the existing one, except in New York. However, the cabs were not as popular as the Renault and Unic competition. By 1907, one-third of New York's 1,800 cabs were Darracq vehicles. It was useful business during the recession of 1908 but Darracq turned his attention to heavy motor vehicles.
By the end of 1909, Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits then known as International Sleeping Car Co Ltd got approval to run taxi service in major cities of India then British India for which they contracted Automobiles Darracq France then known Darracq Co to supply 3,000 units of 1910 models powered by 14-16 hp engines.
Steam buses
A joint venture into steam buses, designed by Leon Serpollet was not a success. Only twenty units were sold, and Darracq and Co lost money on the project. London's Darracq-Serpollet Omnibus Company incorporated in May 1906 was hampered by delays in building a new factory with the death of Léon Serpollet from cancer in early 1907 at the age of 48. The nurse of either Mr Nickols or Mr Karslake believed the steam buses would blow up and would not allow any of her patients travel on one. The unpopular buses proved to have a brief uneconomic service life and their manufacturer was liquidated in 1912. As a result, Darracq and Co had to write off an investment of £156,000, representing a substantial portion of their capital.Ian Nickols and Kent Karslake, Motoring Entente, Cassell, London 1956
Aviation In 1907, Alexandre Darracq became interested in aviation, and by 1909, Darracq S.A. started building light aero engines, used by Louis Blériot and Alberto Santos-Dumont. These engines were clearly based on their racing engines, and there may have been just two built.
Competition
After 1907, it became harder to sell Darracq's cars. Prices had to be cut, and new models did not attract the expected customers. Returning to Alexandre Darracq's 1898 idea to build low-cost, good-quality cars, much like Henry Ford was doing with the Model T, Darracq S.A. introduced a £260 model at the very end of 1911.Company Meetings, The New Darracq Valveless Model. The Times, Thursday, 14 Dec 1911; pg. 18; Issue 39768 These, at the founder's insistence, would all be cursed with the HenriodC E Henriod & Cie manufacturers of the change-speed rear axles where the change-speed box forms part of the differential casing rotary valve engine, which was underpowered and prone to seizing. The new engine's failure was reported by Darracq & Company London to its shareholders to be no more than the difficulty of achieving quantity production. It proved disastrous for the marque, and Alexandre Darracq would be obliged to resign.
In late 1911, Alexandre Darracq was replaced by a new manager, his former chief engineer, Paul Ribeyrolles who was the former head of Gladiator inventor, and motor racing enthusiast. In June 1912, Darracq resigned, after selling all his shares. A main board director, Hopkins, was sent to Paris to take charge of general administration, while Owen Clegg, the former Rover Company chief engineer, was recalled from the USA, where he was studying production methods at Darracq's expense, and appointed as the works manager.Darracq Meeting Adjourned. The Times, Tuesday, 17 Dec 1912; pg. 16; Issue 40084 At the end of 1912, the chairman reassured shareholders that a return on their investment in the valveless motor would arrive in 1913.Company Results. A Darracq. The Times, Tuesday, 10 Dec 1912; pg. 19; Issue 40078
By February 1913 shareholders had set up their own inquiry into the unsatisfactory position of their business and it reported poor co-operation between London and Suresnes, they had been pulling against each other, furthermore there had been considerable loss through "recent changes in personnel".The Darracq Inquiry. The Times, Thursday, Feb 20, 1913; pg. 15; Issue 40140 The committee then went on record saying: "M. Darracq, as a typical Frenchman, probably possessed far more originality and initiative than any Englishman of corresponding situation, but, if he displayed a failing, it was that he, like most of his brilliant race, lacked the Englishman's pertinacity, and, after a time, seemed to lose interest, as it were, in his original conceptions without making any serious effort to strike out a fresh line."The Darracq Board And The Committee's Report. The Times, Friday, 28 Feb 1913; pg. 14; Issue 40147
The chairman of the investigating committee, Norman Craig, was appointed chairman of A Darracq and Company (1905).
New works manager and designer of the proven Rover Twelve, appointed in October 1912, Owen Clegg, sensibly copied the Twelve for Darracq & Co's new model. Before his appointment as works manager Clegg had spent 12 months in USA at Darracq's expense studying automobile production. The factory at Suresnes was retooled for mass production, making it one of the first in the industry to do so. The 16HP Clegg-Darracq was joined by an equally reliable 2.1-litre 12HP car, and soon the factory was turning out sixty cars a week; by 1914, 12,000 men rolled out fourteen cars a day.
First World War During the First World War, Darracq S.A. switched to the production of various war materials. The firm also returned to aircraft engine manufacturing as licensed builders of the Peugeot 8Aa and the Renault 12Fe.