Old cars fight on in France
December 1, 2009 by La Flaneur
One notes that the French tend to service and preserve their cars better in general. Used cars are in high demand and generally command higher prices. It’s not that easy to find a bargain or even a junker although we managed to find one (I’ll save that for a later post.)
One does run into some interesting old cars that are still on the roads here. The most amazing one by far is this Ford Model T just parked on a road one day near our home in the suburbs around Paris. It was simply stunning to see just parked by the road. It was in perfect condition and certainly would fit right into a museum setting.
As can be plainly seen here in the picture the wheels are actually made from wooden spokes. Of course the interior of the car is spartan but as with the outside it was all original and in like new condition.
We never had a chance to meet the owner. The car hasn’t been out again either. But this summer we will be on the lookout. I’d love to find a way to cajole what I expect is an old Frenchman to at least give my kids a ride around the blog in this old beauty.
Another random sighting was this strange little car called the Dauphine and made by Renault from 1956 to 1967. At the time I took the pictures I thought it just looked like a neat old car. Little did I know that it was chosen instead as “the 9th worst care of the millennium” by the fine gents over at Car Talk. Accordingly they noted that the car was “truly unencumbered by the engineering process.” In a similar condemnation by Time they noted that the care “could actually be heard rusting.”
Now of course this is an amazing illustration of just how much the French love to hold on to these old cars. It seems that any version of the Renault Dauphine should have been placed on the junk heap decades ago, but here is one in perfect condition sitting in the parking lot at the mall. So someone has seen fit to maintain this car over all these years despite the fact that it need over 30 seconds to go from 0 to 60 mph and has a reputation for breaking down all the time. That’s a will to preserve if I ever saw one!
All this doesn’t mean you won’t see mostly new and late model cars on the roads here. Improved gas mileage is a big reason people buy new models given that gas costs around $7/gallon for regular.
French Fragments
October 17, 2008 by La Flaneur
Living and working in France for a few years is enough to begin to see the place and the people a bit differently. Given the richness of the country it’s no surprise that there’s plenty to see, ponder and write about. We’re starting with what we know but over time may expand if we can attract some other like-minded souls who can write about their own experiences coming from other geographies, industries and lifestyles.
Our goal is to inform, illuminate and have some fun with the topics we find interesting. If we discover strange manhole covers we may just document and write about them. Same goes for pasteries, butchers, hardware stores, monuments, attitudes, politics, companies, parks, bars and so on.
When we discover particularly good books and other resources we’ll provide reviews and links to send you ever deeper into the world of France.
