Peugeot 203 Barbier, 1950

Chassis No.: 1151923

€100 000 | Sold

French registration title

Sold without contrôle technique The history of the Barbier family is directly linked to competition and the Lion marque: it all began in the mid-1920s, when Étienne Barbier won the Aix-les-Bains Rally at the wheel of his Peugeot 172. The bug was instantly passed on to his son Paul who, after the Second World War, took part in numerous races at the wheel of modified 203s. His successes included three consecutive class wins in the Lyon-Charbonnières event, and a second place in the 1954 Monte Carlo Rally...

The car that illustrates these pages is one of the rare survivors of Paul Barbier’s work, and is certainly the most legendary of them all. After numerous successes at the wheel of a 203 A modified from cabriolet to low-slung coupé, notably in the 1953 Faucille hill-climb and the 1954 Beaujolais Rally (registration 203 AS 38), he decided to speed things up and asked Roger Tunesi to design a Bugatti tank-style barquette, or DB barquette... A new base was used, but the car’s registration card mentioned at the beginning of this paragraph was retained. The result is magnificent: the bodywork is made entirely of aluminium, and the overall weight without the engine is given as 45 kg!

As for the mechanical preparation, it is constantly evolving, in line with the races in which the car will take part...

From the very first outing (the 1954 Val de Suzon hill climb), Barbier won his class! This was followed by hill climbs at Planfoy, Serrières Annonay, Dijon, the Critérium de Bourgogne, the Lyon-Charbonnières, the Bol d’Or, the Neige et Glace... The fabulous adventure came to an end on 1 April 1956: Paul Barbier was killed at the wheel of a Peugeot 403... Orphaned, our small car then passed into the hands of Michel Bléhaut, one of Barbier’s closest friends, who continued to race the car in 1956, until the Gineste hill climb (where Bléhaut beat Guichet in the Ferrari 500 Mondial).

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It was after this race that Robert Rastit bought the car, before entering it in the 1957 Mille Miglia: the car was numbered 356, but retired. After that, the car passed through various hands in the south of France, before ending up with François Barbier (son of Paul Barbier) thanks to Antoine Raffaëlli!

The car subsequently became part of the current owner’s exceptional collection, where it has held a special place for some years now, being used only in very fine weather. While the engine that powers it today comes from a Peugeot 403, all the other components are still present: 2-litre SEIA compressor, second 5-litre fuel tank (made for hill climbs), windscreen, etc. The file is also extensive, tracing the car’s history from the outset through a large number of photos (available on request).

This is an absolutely unique opportunity for all enthusiasts looking for that rare pearl: a French racer with a unique track record, competitive and highly eligible for the Mille Miglia! For over 20 years, Mr A. has been collecting Peugeot 203s. But not just any 203, no. Some production models, of course, saloons and estate cars, but above all one-offs, with special bodywork and prepared engines. The four cars that follow are the finest pieces in his collection, the last ones he kept before turning the page to new projects.

Thank you Mr A., and happy bidding.

https://www.aguttes.com/lot/160416/3e5428e0-3a6a-47bf-9923-9587606d22d3