Chenard-Walcker

"Walcker" redirects here. For the German pipe organ builder, see Walcker Orgelbau.

Chenard-Walcker T2 1913

Chenard-Walcker, also known as Chenard & Walcker and Chenard et Walcker was a French automobile manufacturer, from 1900 to 1946. The factory was at first in Asnières-sur-Seine moving to Gennevilliers in 1906.^[1]

History

Ernest Chenard (1861-1922)^[1] was a railway engineer and maker of bicycles with a factory in Asnières-sur-Seine. He joined with mining engineer Henri Walcker (1877–1912)^[1] in 1898 to make motor tricycles. They formally founded Chenard, Walkcer et Compagnie in 1900 with Chenard in charge of design and Walcker sales and finance. In the same year made their first four wheel car. This had a two cylinder, 1160 cc engine of their own design which drove the rear wheels through a four speed gearbox and an unusual transmission system. From the gearbox there were two drive shafts, one to each rear hub, with the hubs driven by gear teeth cut on the inside. The car was shown at the 1901 Paris Salon.

In March 1906 the company went public and became the Société Anonyme des Anciens Étabissements Chenard et Walcker and moved to a new factory at Gennevilliers in 1908.^[1] The new name has caused confusion over the years as to whether the cars should be called Chenard-Walcker or Chenard et Walcker, both names seem to have been used. Annual production steadily increased with a major market being the supply of taxis especially in Paris. In 1910 they made over 1500 cars making them the 9th largest maker in France. A six cylinder car of 4.5 litre joined the line up in 1913 and at the outbreak of war in 1914 the model range consisted of the six cylinder and fours of 2.0, 2.6 and 3 litre capacities.

During World War I Hispano-Suiza aircraft engines were made as well as military versions of the Type U car.^[2]

With peace, only production of the six cylinder, now called the Model UU, was resumed but in 1920 a brand new 2648 cc four, the 12CV, was added. FAR commercial vehicles were also made. Following the death of Ernest Chenard in 1922, his son Lucien Chenard (1896–1971) took over.^[1]

The 3-litre car of 1922, designed by Henri Toutée (1884–1943) who had been with the company since 1906, with overhead camshaft engine was the winner of the very first Le Mans 24 Hours Race, in 1923 driven by René Léonard and André Lagache, both engineers employed by Chenard et Walcker. A 2 litre version, the 10/12 was subsequently sold to the public.

In 1925 Chenard et Walkcer was the fourth largest car maker in France.^[1] They went into partnership with Delahaye in 1927 sharing designs and components, an arrangement that lasted until 1931. Unic were also offered a place in the new consortium but declined the offer.^[2]

Front independent suspension was introduced on some 1934 models and also front wheel drive using Grégoire designs on the Super Aigle models but this was not a great success as it was launched at the same time as the Citroën Traction Avant but was considerably more expensive. In the same year the Aigle 8 with V-8 engine was launched.

Decline

The company had never had sufficient capital to modernise and the cars remained largely hand built leaving them unable to compete on price. As a result they went bankrupt in 1936 and were taken over by body maker Chausson and the 1938 models shared bodies with Matford, distinguishable only by the radiator grilles and were powered by Citroën or Ford V-8 engines. There were plans to rejuvenate (again) the appearance of the big Chenard & Walcker "Aigle 22CV" model for 1939, giving it a raked grille, but this came to nothing and car production finally ceased in 1939 or 1940.^[3] In April 1940 an advertisement for the company's Matford based passenger cars appeared in the French language version of a leading Swiss based motor magazine, but by this time the company appears to have been finishing up existing stocks of new cars rather than building more.^[3]

The war years

In September 1939 France declared war on Germany and in June 1940 the German army rapidly invaded and occupied Northern France. The war years were characterised by a desperate shortage of raw materials for civilian industry and of petrol. In 1940 Chenard & Walcker presented the prototype for a light van based ambulance intended for the army, and this vehicle turned out to be the first in a long line of forward control light vans.^[3] By 1941 the van was listed for civilian use, powered by a compact 720cc two stroke water-cooled engine which occupied a central position between the driver's right leg and the left leg of his passenger. Power output was in the region of 20 hp which seems to have been barely compatible with the stated 1,500 Kg of carrying capacity.^[3] By 1942 fuel for civilian use had become virtually unobtainable and an electric-powered version of the little van was offered by a company called Sovel.^[3] Although the success of the little van was not sufficient to ensure the manufacturer a long-term future in vehicle production, the van itself endured, and shortly after Chausson (the company which by now had acquired Chenard & Walcker) itself fell into the hands of Peugeot, the van acquired the engine from the Peugeot 202. A few years later, in 1950, it was rebranded as the Peugeot D3 van.^[3] The last ones to carry the Chenard name were made in 1950.

Major models

Type U (1913), 4 cylinders, 3014 cc, 15 hp

• 14/16 1905
• Type M 1907
• Type N 1907
• Type P 1910
• Type U 15CV 1913
• Type UU 1919
• Type U 12CV 1920
• Type TT 1922
• 3 litre 1922
• 10/15CV 1924
• 12/25CV 1924
• 22CV Straight 8 1924
• 14CV 1929
• Y6 1929
• 8CV 1931
• Super Aigle 4 1934
• Aiglon 1934
• Aigle 4S 1934
• Aigle 8 1934
• Aigle 20 1938
• Aigle 22 1938

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Georgano, N. (2000). Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. London: HMSO. ISBN 1-57958-293-1. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "The Rise and Fall of Chenard-Walkcer", The Automobile. November 1996
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f} "Automobilia". Toutes les voitures françaises 1940 - 46 (les années sans salon) (Paris: Histoire & collections) Nr. 26: Page 21. 2003.