top of page
I'm a title. Click here to add your own text and edit me.
Race Paris - Vienna 1902 Replishing stop Marcellin on Darraq

Ich bin ein Textabschnitt. Klicke hier, um deinen eigenen Text hinzuzufügen und mich zu bearbeiten.

Danke! Die Nachricht wurde gesendet.

Wolfsburg 2024

T

 

 

 

Liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen

 

nach den erfolgreichen ersten drei Europäischen Konferenzen für Automobilgeschichte, die 2017 im Musée National de l'Automobile in Mulhouse, 2019 im Louwman Museum in Den Haag und 2022 im MAuto in Turin stattfanden, freuen sich Anders Clausager, Nataša Jerina Grom von der FIVA-Kommission für Jugend und Kultur und ich, ankündigen zu können, dass die vierte Konferenz vom 4. bis 6. Oktober 2024 in der Autostadt in Wolfsburg in Deutschland stattfinden wird und von der FIVA (Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens) unterstützt wird.

 

Die Autostadt, die im Jahr 2000 eröffnet wurde, ist ein automobiler Themenpark, der zum Volkswagen-Konzern gehört. Er wurde auf einem Gelände neben dem ursprünglichen Volkswagen Stammwerk errichtet. Sie beherbergt das Zeithaus-Museum, in dem auf fünf Etagen 280 historische Fahrzeuge von 60 verschiedenen Marken aus einem Zeitraum von 130 Jahren ausgestellt sind, sowie sieben Pavillons, die sich jeweils mit einer der Marken des Volkswagen-Konzerns befassen. Auf dem Gelände befindet sich auch eine VW-Touareg-Teststrecke. Es gibt zwei Kinos, mehrere Restaurants und die berühmten Glastürme, in denen VW-Neuwagen auf die Abholung durch ihre Besitzer warten. Die Autostadt zieht jedes Jahr zwei Millionen Besucher an.

 

Der Ablauf der Konferenz ist derselbe wie bei den vorangegangenen Konferenzen, mit einem Begrüßungsdinner am Freitagabend, einem ganztägigen Vortragsprogramm am Samstag mit Mittag- und Abendessen und einer Vormittagssitzung am Sonntag mit weiteren Vorträgen. Für diejenigen, die am Sonntagnachmittag bleiben möchten, hoffen wir, einen Gruppenbesuch in der Stiftung Automuseum Volkswagen in Wolfsburg machen zu können. Wir hoffen, die Tagungsgebühr bei etwa 175 € halten zu können.

 

Über die Unterbringung sind wir im Gespräch mit dem Innside by Melia Hotel in Wolfsburg. Es liegt in Geh weite der Autostadt und des Hauptbahnhofs. Es sind jedoch auch andere Hoteloptionen verfügbar. Der nächstgelegene Flughafen ist Hannover, dann folgen Hamburg und Berlin. Wolfsburg liegt an der Hauptbahnstrecke zwischen Hannover und Berlin.

 

Bitte beachten Sie, dass es sich bei dieser Nachricht um einen vorläufigen Überblick über die Veranstaltung handelt und wir noch keine Anmeldungen entgegennehmen. Wir würden uns jedoch freuen, von Ihnen zu hören, wenn Sie daran interessiert sind, auf der Konferenz einen Vortrag zu halten. Wie in den vergangenen Jahren bitten wir darum, dass sich die Konferenzbeiträge mit Themen der Automobilgeschichte befassen, die von allgemeinem europäischem oder sogar internationalem Interesse sind. Aus Höflichkeit gegenüber unseren Gastgebern würden wir jedoch insbesondere Beiträge begrüßen, die sich mit der Geschichte der Automobilindustrie und des Automobils in Deutschland befassen.

 

Die Präsentationen sollten max. 30 Minuten dauern, was Ihnen typischerweise 4500 Wörter und bis zu 30 Folien in der Powerpoint-Präsentation erlaubt. Die Konferenzsprache ist Englisch. Bitte reichen Sie bis zum 1. April 2024 eine Skizze oder ein Abstract von 200-400 Wörtern ein. Wir haben bereits mehrere Zusagen für Vorträge erhalten und können daher nicht garantieren, dass wir alle anderen Angebote annehmen können. Bitte beachten Sie, dass die Referenten wie in den Vorjahren die normale Konferenzgebühr entrichten müssen.

 

Sie haben diese Nachricht erhalten, weil Sie an einer oder mehreren der früheren Konferenzen teilgenommen haben. Wenn Sie es vorziehen, keine weiteren Informationen zu erhalten, lassen Sie es mich bitte wissen; ebenso, wenn Sie es vorziehen, dass wir eine andere E-Mail-Adresse verwenden. Andererseits wären wir Ihnen dankbar, wenn Sie dabei helfen würden, die Veranstaltung bei Kollegen in Ihrer Organisation und anderen Interessenten bekannt zu machen.

 

Anders, Nataša und ich freuen uns darauf, Sie im nächsten Oktober in Wolfsburg wiederzusehen.

 

Mit freundlichen Grüßen

Thomas Ulrich

Dear colleagues


Following on from the successful first three European Conferences for Automotive History, in 2017 at the Musée National de l’Automobile in Mulhouse, in 2019 at the Louwman Museum in Den Haag, and in 2022 at the MAuto in Torino, Thomas Ulrich of the Automobilhistorische Gesellschaft, Nataša Grom Jerina of the FIVA Youth and Culture Commission, and I, are delighted to announce that the fourth conference will be held on 4-6 October 2024, hosted by the Autostadt in Wolfsburg in Germany, and supported by FIVA (Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens).

Autostadt which was first opened in 2000 is an automotive theme park which is part of the Volkswagen Group. It is built on land adjacent to the original main Volkswagen factory. It contains the Zeithaus museum, with 280 historic cars of 60 different brands covering a period of 130 years displayed over five floors, and seven pavilions each focusing on one of the brands within the Volkswagen Group. The grounds include a VW Touareg test track. There are two cinemas, several restaurants, and the famous glass towers where new VW cars are stored, awaiting collection by their owners. Autostadt attracts two million visitors per year.

The format of the conference will be the same as the previous conferences, with a welcome dinner Friday evening, a full day of presentations on the Saturday with lunch and dinner, and a morning session on the Sunday with further presentations. For those who wish to stay Sunday afternoon, we hope to arrange a group visit to the Stiftung Automuseum Volkswagen in Wolfsburg. We hope to keep the conference fee to about €175.

We are in discussion with the Innside by Melia Hotel in Wolfsburg about accommodation. This is within walking distance of the Autostadt, and of the main railway station. However, other hotel options are available. For travelling, the nearest airport is Hanover, then Hamburg and Berlin. Wolfsburg is on the main railway line between Hanover and Berlin.

Please note that this message is a provisional outline of the event, and we are not yet accepting bookings. However, we would welcome hearing from you if you are interested in giving a presentation at the conference. As in previous years, we ask that conference papers should deal with subjects in automotive history which have a general European or even international interest, however, as a courtesy to our hosts, we would particularly welcome papers dealing with subjects relating to the history of the motor industry and motoring in Germany.

Presentations should be of max. 30 minutes, which will typically allow you 4500 words, and up to 30 slides in a Powerpoint presentation. The conference language will be English. Please submit an outline or abstract of 200-400 words by 1 April 2024. We have already been promised several presentations so cannot guarantee to accept all other offers. Please note that as in previous years, speakers are expected to pay the normal conference fee.

You have received this message because you have attended one or more of the previous conferences, but if you would prefer not to receive further information, please let me know; also if you would prefer us to use a different email address. On the other hand, we’d be grateful if you help to spread the word about the event, to colleagues within your organization, and other interested parties.

Thomas, Nataša, and I, look forward to seeing you again in Wolfsburg next October.

With Season’s Greetings and kind regards, Anders

Anders Ditlev Clausager MA MDes(RCA)
Secretary, Society of Automotive Historians in Britain (Ltd)

Third European Conference for Automotive Historians

Ich hatte schon mit Anders Ditlev Clausager  die beiden ersten Pan Euroäischen Konferenzen gemacht und für die dritte hatten wir uns Turin ausgesucht. Wegen Corona mussten wir die Konferenz zweimal verschieben, aber jetzt Mitte Oktober fand sie statt. Gastgeber für die Konferenz war Mauto Museo Nazionale dell´Automobile in Torin. Am Ufer des Po gelegen wurde dieser Bau Anfang der sechziger Jahre als Automobilmuseum konzipierte Bau errichtet und beherbergt heute eines der besten Automuseen in Europa.

Es kamen 85 Interessierte Teilnehmer aus zwanzig Ländern zu der Konferenz. Es wurden zwanzig Vorträge gehalten mit folgenden Themen.

                                                           Tobias Baldus: The Automobile in Poster Art to 1914

                                                           Joris Bergsma: Isadora Duncan and her Death

                                                           Sandro Binelli: Mille Miglia’s Chassis Research

                                                           Lorenzo Boscarelli: Presentation of AISA

                                                           Roland Dhondt: The Evolution of Wheels and Tyres

                                                           Dr Stefan Dierkes: How Pietro Frua Built his Concept Cars in Six Weeks

                                                           Dr Susan Grunewald: The Soviet Automotive Industry: Technology Transfer, Politics, and Culture

                                                           Nataša G Jerina and to be announced: The Work of the FIVA Culture and Youth Commission

                                                           Erich Karsholt: Car Manufacture in Denmark

                                                           Hans Lipp: The World’s Automobile Production 1886 - 1918

                                                           Karl Ludvigsen: A European “World Car” of the 1930s

                                                           Davide Lorenzone: Steam Carriages and Cars

                                                           Elton McGoun: Pre-War Sports Cars and Sporting Cars in Europe and America

                                                           Mariella Mengozzi: Presentation of MAuto

                                                           Dr Wolfgang Munzinger: The Automobile as Mechanical Mistress

                                                           Dott.essa Iliari Pani: The MAuto Documentation Centre

                                                           Aleksandar Vidojkovic: Studying Local Automotive History Using a Multi-Disciplinary Approach

                                                           Dazu kamen noch Roland Kayser mit E-Fuels

                                                           Und Pal Negyesi, “The Hungarian Automotive Industry”

                   Und ganz zum Schluss eine kurze Rede von Tiddo Bresters, dem Präsidenten der Fiva.

Es gab mehrere Pausen und am Samstagabend ein Dinner im Museum bei dem die Teilnehmer ausreichend Gelegenheit hatten sich Auszutauschen. Für die Teilnehmer der Konferenz war es eine gelungene Veranstaltung. Für jeden gab es mindestens einen sehr interessanten Vortrag und vor allem die Gelegenheit sich mit Gleichgesinnten zu treffen und auszutauschen. Die Teilnehmer hatten die Gelegenheit sich das Archiv und auch die Reserve Kollektion anzuschauen. Die meisten anwesenden hatten zur Übernachtung ein Hotel in der ehemaligen Fiat Fabrik Lingotto gebucht und Natürlich wurde das Dach, die ehemalige Einfahr Strecke, besucht. Leider ist es nicht mehr möglich dort mit einem Auto zu fahren.

Wir haben jetzt einen Partner gefunden, mit dem wir in Zukunft die Konferenzen machen werden, denn wir haben festgestellt das es als Privatperson kaum noch möglich ist eine solche Konferenz zu organisieren.  Die Fiva hat sich freundlicher Weise erklärt bei der Organisation mit zu arbeiten. Sie hat uns in Turin schon mit Rat und Tat geholfen und zum Erfolg der Konferenz beigetragen.

 

 

Third European Conference for Automotive Historians I had already done the first two Pan-European conferences with Anders Ditlev Clausager and for the third one we had chosen Turin. Because of Corona we had to postpone the conference twice, but now it took place in mid-October. The host for the conference was Mauto Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile in Torin. Situated on the banks of the Po, this building was constructed in the early sixties as an automobile museum and now houses one of the best automobile museums in Europe. The conference was attended by 85 interested participants from twenty countries. Twenty lectures were given on the following topics.

Tobias Baldus: The Automobile in Poster Art to 1914

Joris Bergsma: Isadora Duncan and her Death

Sandro Binelli: Mille Miglia's Chassis Research

Lorenzo Boscarelli: Presentation of AISA

Roland Dhondt: The Evolution of Wheels and Tyres

Dr Stefan Dierkes: How Pietro Frua Built his Concept Cars in Six Weeks

Dr Susan Grunewald: The Soviet Automotive Indus- try: Technology Transfer, Politics, and Culture

Nataša G Jerina and to be announced: The Work of the FIVA Culture and Youth Commission

Erich Karsholt: Car Manufacture in Denmark

Hans Lipp: The World's Automobile Production 1886 -1918

Karl Ludvigsen: A European "World Car" of the 1930s

Davide Lorenzone: Steam Carriages and Cars

Elton McGoun: Pre-War Sports Cars and Sporting Cars in Europe and America

Mariella Mengozzi: Presentation of MAuto

Dr Wolfgang Munzinger: The Automobile as Me- chanical Mistress

Dott.essa Iliari Pani: The Mauto Documentation Centre

Aleksandar Vidojkovic: Studying Local Automotive History Using a Multi-Disciplinary Approach In addition,

Roland Kayser with E-Fuels

And Pal Negyesi, "The Hungarian Automotive Industry

And at the very end a short speech by Tiddo Bresters, President of Fiva. There were several breaks and on Saturday evening a dinner in the museum where the participants had plenty of opportunity to exchange ideas. For the participants of the conference it was a successful event. There was at least one very interesting lecture for everyone and above all the opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with like-minded people. The participants had the opportunity to visit the archive and the reserve collection. Most of the participants had booked a hotel in the former Fiat factory Lingotto for the night and of course the roof, the former entry track, was visited. Unfortunately it is no longer possible to drive there with a car. We have now found a partner with whom we will organise the conferences in the future, because we have found that it is hardly possible to organise such a conference as a private person. Fiva has kindly agreed to work with us on the organisation. They already helped us in Turin with words and deeds and contributed to the success of the conference.

Anders and me, trying to get everything right.

Our host, the director of the Mauto Museum

Karl Ludvigsen during his speech:

A European World Car of the 1930s

The participants could also visit the archive and Ilari Pani showed some very interesting stuff.

A group of participants at the visit at the reserve collection

Dr. Pal Negyesi made a short, but very interesting speech about Hungarian Automobiles. Some seemed to be exported to Japan.

The Auditorium in the Mauto Museum

DSCF7508.JPG
DSCF7523.JPG
DSC02257.JPG
IMG_2877.JPG
IMG_2820.JPG
IMG_2830.JPG
IMG_2837.JPG
IMG_2841.JPG
IMG_2847.JPG
IMG_2852.JPG
IMG_2857.JPG
IMG_2854.JPG

After Lunch, Monique Chapelle from the Berliet Foundation

talked about Paul Berliet, an Entrepreneur without borders.

IMG_2860.JPG
DSCF7567.JPG
IMG_2868.JPG
IMG_2887.JPG
IMG_2879.JPG

Second Pan European conference for automotive history

 

At the last weekend in March 2019 the meeting point for automotive historians was the Louwman museum in Den Haag, Netherlands. The Louwman museum was host to the conference organized by Anders Ditlev Clausager and me. On Friday 29. we met for an informal evening dinner in a Restaurant with a lot of participants.

In the Morning of Saturday the 30. of March the conference began in the Toyoda room. 114 participants filled the room.

 

 

The first speaker was Ronald Kooyman, the general manager of the Louwman museum. He gave a short lecture about the museum. How the Louwman collection developed and the thinking in the construction of the museum building.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After Ronald Kooyman, Pal Negyesi from Hungary spoke about

„How the Motor museum saw the car“ The history of motor

Museums in Germany and Austria.

 

 

                                                                                                                                         

 

 

 

 

 

                                                       

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                             

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                  The next speaker was Richard Keller, the conservateur                                                                                                                                                          en Chef of the Musée National de ´l  Automobile who spoke                                                                                                                                                  about „The Mulhouse Museum and the Schlumpf Collection.“

 

 

 

Nesbosja Dordevic from Belgrade, Serbia spoke about the

 Belgrad Sportscar race, 3. September 1939.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                          

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                          

 

                                                                                                                           After the break, which followed,                                                                                                                                                                                                Kate Olcott Sullivan from from the                                                                                                                                                                                             University of Edinborough talked about                                                                                                                              "                                                    Transnational Heritage Preservation and 

                                                                                                                           Automobile Appreciation"

 

Dr. Fons Alkemade spoke about Conam, the Dutch automotive

historians club and the NCAD, the Dutch Centre for

Automotive History Documentation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                T

                                

 

 

                                                                                                                           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                              

                                                                                                                              

 

 

                                                                                                                              

                                                                                                                            

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                        

                   This was followed by Karl Ludvigsen, who spoke about                                                                                                                                                         Ferdinand  Porsche, Master of Mechatricity. Porsche’s inventions 

                    and early forrais into Petrol Electric vehicles

 

 

 

                                                                                                                         

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                        

 

                                                                                                                         

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elton „Skip“ McGoun from the Uslecturde about „Late to the Party:

HowUS Auto Makers Countered European Sports Cars in the 1950s“.

 

 

                                                                                                                         This was followed with „Egon Brütsch and his Minicars“ from 

                                                                                                                         Tobias Baldus, a student from Berlin.

 

 

                                                                                                                        

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                        

 

 

 

 

 

Professor Patrick Fridenson from Paris spoke about

„The Renault 4" of 1961 and Citroën‘s Reaction.

 

 

 

  

 

                                                                                                                                 The last speech of the day came from Professor Alessandro  Silva                                                                                                                                      from Milan, Italy, who spoke about the „Maserati Four- Cylinder                                                                                                                                             Racing and Sports cars 1932 - 49.

In the evening we met in a Restaurant nearby the Museum. With a nice meal and Beer and Wine everyone had the opportunity to speak to each other.

                                                                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                               

 

 

 

On Sunday morning we met half an hour later in the Louwman Museum and the beginning was with:

 

Dr. Paul Nieuwenhuis from Britain with „Ford, Budd and the origins

of Maß Production“

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                               The Dane Jens Moller Nicolaisen was next with „Citroen

                                                                                                                                a multinational European car maker".

 

 

 

He was followed by Dr. Gundulam Tutt with „Artificial Leather Materials and their use in Vehicles, History and Production".

 

 

                                                                                                                               

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

 

                                                                                                                              

 

 

He was followed by Dr. Gundulam Tutt with „Artificial Leather Materials and their use in Vehicles, History and Production".

  After a short coffee break the last three speeches followed.

 

  Jeroen Booij told us about „The Italien

  „Carozzeria“BMC Mini and 1100 Cars.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

                                                  .                                                                                Stefan Dierkes followed with „Three decades of                                                                                                                                                                       European GT oupes, coachbuilt by Pietro Frua.

 

  

 

The last but not least speaker was Peter Moss with his very Personal „Beauty in Cars, what makes a Good looking Car?                                                                                                                                                       S .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                       

                                                                                                                             

 

 

 

T

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IMG_2894.JPG
IMG_2898.JPG
DSCF7642.JPG
IMG_2915.JPG
IMG_2924.JPG
IMG_2934.JPG
DSCF7648.JPG
IMG_2938.JPG
IMG_2949.JPG
IMG_2957.JPG
DSCF7663.JPG

All in all those where two very exciting days. For Anders and me, we now could see how our work came to a very interesting end. It seemed that everyone enjoyed themselves very much and listened to very interesting and varying speeches.

 

Our biggest thanks is going to Ronald Kooyman as director of the Louwman museum and Evert Louwman for being so grateful hosts to the Second  European Conference for Automotive History.

The planning for the next, the third conference has already begun. The date is not set, yet the third conference will be held in the Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile in Torino Italy. It will be either in the endof next year or in spring 2021.

All in all those where two very exciting days. For Anders and me, we now could see how our work came to a very interesting end. It seemed that everyone enjoyed themselves very much and listened to very interesting and varying speeches.

 

Our biggest thanks is going to Ronald Kooyman as director of the Louwman museum and Evert Louwman for being so grateful hosts to the Second  European Conference for Automotive History.

The planning for the next, the third conference has already begun. The date is not set, yet the third conference will be held in the Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile in Torino Italy. It will be either in the endof next year or in spring 2021.

DSCF7560.JPG
Mercedes Joswin-2.jpg

The Joswin in the Louwman Museum would be my car

First Pan European conference for  automotive history

                          Mulhouse 2017

 Musée National de L'Automobile in Mulhouse

The name for my website developed from a meeting with Anders Ditlev Clausager, secretary of the SAHB (Society of Automotive Historians in Britain) some years ago at the SAH (Society of Automotive Historians) Dinner on the eve of the Retromobile in Paris. I had only recently been elected as the secretary of the AHG (Automobilhistorische Gesellschaft e.V.) so we spoke quite a lot together. We met again at the Techno Classica in Essen in 2015, and it was then that Anders told me about his idea to organise a European meeting for Automotive Historians. I quite liked that idea and I offered my help, which he accepted.

And so we began. He suggested it should be held in Alsace as it is more or less in the centre of Europe. Also in Paris, I had met Richard Keller, the Conservateur en Chef of the Musée National de L'Automobile in Mulhouse, Alsace (the Schlumpf museum). So I asked him, if it would be possible to have such a European conference in his museum. He was absolutely enthusiastic about the idea. Yes of course, and he would help us in any way.

So the location was settled and the next question was the date. After some discussion we agreed on the weekend 26 to 28 May 2017.

From the beginning, both of us were in contact with our own and other similar societies, and we informed fellow historians and colleagues about our plans. Many of them expressed an interest, and volunteered to make presentations.

Anders and I agreed to split responsibilities – he would organise the speeches and put the programme together, and I would make the arrangements with the venue, the hotel, and handle the financial transactions, because they do not use Euros on “the island”.

Anders produced a leaflet in English, I translated it, and we sent it to everyone, whom we thought might be interested in attending the conference.

Very soon we had quite a lot of offers of presentations, enough for two days. From the beginning we thought that we would need at least one and a half days for the conference. I had made contact with Martin Waltz of the Museum Volante in Kirchzarten near Freiburg in Germany. As I looked at the map to see how far it is from Mulhouse, I realised that it is only 65 kilometres (40 miles) away, so I asked Martin Waltz, if it would be possible to have a second part of the conference on the Sunday in his museum. He was delighted and said yes.

So, in the end we had our conference in two locations and in two countries: a real European event.

Because of this, we wanted to feature presentations which would have a common theme of “crossing borders” and be relevant to automotive history in more than one European country. The other idea was to have presentations on subjects which would be of general interest to the discipline of automotive history. And our presenters did not let us down; thank you to all of you.

When we came to the end of May 2017, we found that more than 70 interested people from 10 different countries had booked for the conference, some with partners. We met on Friday evening at the Hotel Bristol in Mulhouse for a dinner.

Over dinner we all got to know each other, the speakers were asked to introduce themselves, and there were many animated exchanges. The next morning saw us at the Cité de l’Automobile where the presentations began.

After this introduction, Christopher Balfour from England and member of the SAHB spoke about his personal experiences relating to the decline of the British-owned motor industry

The first speaker was Richard Keller, our host. He gave a brief history of his museum.

He was followed by Dr Stefan Dierkes from Germany who spoke about “Do we need more science in automotive history research?“ He gave quite a lot of arguments why we need to make our research more rigorous.

His very entertaining and thought-provoking presentation was followed by Dr. Fons Alkemade of CONAM in The Netherlands. His presentation was about the cooperation between Spyker in Holland and Maybach in Germany, in the difficult times after the First World War.

 Next was Professore Alessandro Silva from Italy, member of the AISA, with his presentation on European Grand Prix racing after the Second World War. He talked about the earliest post-war motor races.

He was followed by Guy Loveridge, of the SAHB in Britain, with his presentation about the first European Grand Prix at Silverstone. He showed a unique colour film of the inaugural Formula One race held in May 1950

 John Barton, also a member of the SAHB, but living in France, spoke about the last Bugattis from Molsheim. He gave us a rare insight into what really happened after the war at Bugatti. Not only that, but he introduced us to a further presentation by the delightfully articulate and still spry 91-year-old René Straub, one of the four engineers at Molsheim selected to work with Colombo on the development of the highly advanced but ill-fated Bugatti Type 251 racing car

The beginnings of Renault in Belgium was the next subject. It was brought to us by Professor Patrick Fridenson from France. He told the story of Renault up to the point when they began to manufacture their cars in Belgium in 1931, as the first Renault plant outside France.

Anthony Heal of the SAHB then spoke about Louis Coatalen, the Breton designer who worked in France and England, with particular regard to Sunbeam and their successful racing cars.

Dr. Gundula Tutt from Germany (AHG) spoke about the history, materials, and technology of car paintwork, 1900 to 1945.  She told us about  the developments in car painting from the early days when it took 18 days, to the present day of high technology, high speed and environmentally friendly painting.

The next speaker came from Germany, too. Frederick Scherer spoke about producing books. The title of his presentation was “Aesthetics and Design of Motoring Books”. He showed some examples of how to design a book to be functional and look nice, and how not to design a book. Most of the authors in the audience learned quite a bit

The last presenter on the Saturday was Nebojsa Djordjevic from Serbia. He gave us a short but very welcome introduction to the history and development of “The Society of Motoring Historians in Serbia”.

Between the speeches we had some breaks, including lunch, and afternoon coffee and cakes. Conference delegates showed their books to others, and continued their individual discourse

The presentations ended at 17.00 and then we had two hours, which gave an opportunity to have a look round the museum, before the evening dinner started.

The dinner was a typical Alsatian affair, with lots of different meat and Choucruote (Sauerkraut). Finally, around 23.00 we returned to the hotel.

The next morning saw us leaving by car to Kirchzarten near Freiburg in Germany. There we visited the Museum Volante, which is notable for a collection of cars bodied by the Parisian coachbuilder Van Vooren.

We were welcomed by Martin Waltz, the owner of the museum. We had our final presentations in the conference room and restaurant.

The first speaker was  Craig Horner (UK, SAHB). The title of his speech was “Beating Johnny foreigner: SF Edge, motoring and English nationalism to 1914.”

He was followed by Peter Moss (UK, SAHB) who gave us a different perspective on the history of automotive design, showing unusual examples of engines, transmissions, and even braking systems. Under the title “What lies beneath the bonnet” he introduced us to some very interesting vehicles. Peter also acted as our technical mastermind, ensuring that the presentations ran without a hitch on different equipment

Next was the Italian Giuseppe Valenza (AISA) from Palermo. And as Palermo is in Sicilly, he spoke of course about the Targa Florio; in fact about how the first Targa of 1906 came to be run.

The last presentation was from Claus Wulff (Germany, AHG), “Making their marques” was about historic radiator emblems. He showed some gems from his huge collection of badges and told plenty of interesting facts about their history.

After a nice lunch, Martin Waltz gave us a tour through his amazing museum. He even introduced Oliver Heal to a Sunbeam car which had once been owned by a member of the Heal family!

 With that the conference ended, but not before we promised to hold another conference in the future. The first discussions about our next event have already taken place.

The photos are from: Guiseppe Valenza, Hans Peter Selz, Peter Moss, Nebojsa Djordevic and me.

bottom of page