1/32 Verneuil Panhard Coupe de Ville 1895 - Panhard et Levassor Coupe - Europe Model Kits Issue
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: Good
The 1895 Panhard has earned a place along side the innovators and forerunners of the first modern cars. Rare kit of this historic automobile from when France clearly lead the automotive world in technology and quality. This happened largely because the French people, government and authorities embraced the horseless carriage; this was the opposite of what happened in most countries, especially Great Britain where they regulated it almost completely out of existence. Nicely detailed and molded with 50 parts in black and clear plastic. Includes large fold-out, highly illustrated instructions with painting guide and automobile history in French. The kit has never been started. The parts are still in the internal factory sealed bags and includes instructions. After initially acquiring a license to produce the Daimler gasoline engine, Panhard made engines for fledgling car makers. However, it was not long before Panhard and Levassor decided to produce their own vehicles. Following production of rear-engined vehicles, in 1891 they standardized what would become the norm for car design for decades to come: front-engined, with a front-mounted radiator, driving though a sliding-mesh gearbox to the rear wheels. It was called 'Systeme Panhard.' In 1894 Panhard developed a very modern clutch and for the 1894 Paris–Rouen Race, Alfred Vacheron equipped his 4hp with a steering wheel; it is believed to be the first use of such. In 1895, 1.2-litre Panhard et Levassor vehicles finished first and second in the 49-hour Paris–Bordeaux–Paris race, with one being piloted solo by Levassor himself. During the 1896 Paris–Marseille–Paris race, Levassor was seriously injured in a crash. He died in Paris in 1897.
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