French voiturettes · Australia since 1922
History, surviving cars and remanufactured parts for the Amilcar CC, CS, C4, CGS and CGSs in Australia.
About Australian Amilcars
Australia took to Amilcars in a way nobody expected of a market that was meant to buy British. Amilcars were French, and the people who ran things looked down on anything that wasn't British. They weren't the buyers, though. It has been suggested that Australians who served in the First World War came home knowing that French vehicles were useful, reliable, hard-working and long-lived. W.O. Bentley himself admitted that British cars of the period were a long way behind the French.
France placed far more emphasis on roadholding, braking, steering, suspension and economy than Britain did. Amilcars run on the smell of an oily rag, and Australia, like France, had long roads with rough surfaces. The French designers set the cruising speed of their engines only a whisker below top speed, so you could cover long distances over bad roads safely and quickly.
Shearing teams are a good example. When hand shears gave way to machine heads, shearers had to carry their own heads and swag, which was too much for a motorcycle. They wanted small, light cars that were cheap to buy, cheap to run, high-geared and reliable. One shearer owned two motorcycles and three Amilcars before the work got too much for him.
New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia had importer-agents, each with a string of sub-agents and spotters. Tasmania and Western Australia had sub-agents. Queensland appears never to have had an agency, or the evidence has yet to emerge. The Amilcar Triangle is marked by Adelaide, Sydney and Melbourne.
The earliest production Amilcar was the CC. The very first cars had no provision for an electric starter, and none of those has been found in Australia. When the factory realised women were a huge potential market but would not hand-crank an engine, it quickly added electric starters, and some of these CCs were imported here. They had folded steel front axles, fabricated rear ends, a short dipstick on the front offside of the crankcase and cast-iron timing cases. The nickel-plated radiator cowl carried water and was not detachable on these early cars. Lloyd Foster of Bendigo owns and is restoring perhaps the earliest Amilcar CC known in Australia.
Amilcars were imported as rolling chassis and sold nearly as fast as they could clear customs and be bodied.
The Austin 7 arrived as a cheaper alternative, and British Empire preference legislation made life hard for anyone selling non-British cars. Chassis imported without bodies received a cut in duty and sales tax, but British vehicles were exempt, which meant the rule was aimed at American and Continental makers. Henry Ford got around it by assembling Model Ts in Canada and later building a factory in Geelong; General Motors answered by buying the Adelaide coachbuilder Holden. A very select few Amilcars came with French coachwork, but most wore Australian bodies. The Great Depression of the early 1930s finally knocked the guts out of the factory and its overseas sales.
Amilcar models in Australia
None of the twin-cam C6 racers and none of the long-stroke M-series CGSs reached Australia. These are the ones that did.
| Model | Arrived | Bore / capacity | Lubrication | Brakes | Identifying features |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CC | 1921– | 55 mm · 900 cc | Splash | Rear only | Folded front axle, split rear axle, water-carrying fixed cowl on early cars |
| CS | c.1923– | 58 mm | Splash | Rear only | Banjo rear axle, forged front axle, gutter-style mudguards |
| E | 1923– | 1,600 cc, later 2,000 cc | Splash, later pressure | Four wheel, tape operated | Large touring car. Engines prone to cracking; very few survive |
| C4 | 1924–late '20s | 58 mm | Splash | Four-shoe rear; a few with front brakes | Longer wheelbase, finned sump, tourer bodies |
| CGS | 1924– | 1,100 cc | Pressure | Four wheel | Redesigned chassis and engine, updated steering |
| G | 1925– | 1,100 cc (CGS engine) | Pressure | Four wheel, larger than CGS | Larger, heavier CGS. Many cut up for specials |
| CGSs | 1926– | 1,100 cc | Pressure | Four wheel, larger | Surbaissé: shorter and lower. About 6–8 in Australia |
The first Amilcar made in France and the first imported into Australia. The earliest example here is a 1921 car with a folded front axle, a split rear axle and a non-removable radiator cowl that holds water. These cars earned the marque its reputation as simple and reliable, suited to Australian conditions. Despite the 55 mm bore the little cars were pushed along adequately.
Nearly identical to the later CC, with a banjo back axle and forged front axle, and imported in substantial numbers. Far more CS parts survive than cars. The bore went to 58 mm with improved cam and valve timing. Light and nimble, with performance close to the later CGS, but braking only on the back wheels.
Amilcar's big touring car, imported from 1923. Early cars had a splash-fed 1,600 cc engine; later cars were given a 2,000 cc engine with pressure lubrication. Brakes are on all four wheels, tape operated. These are large cars, and the engines are prone to cracking. Very few survive, and because they are so scarce, replacement parts are very hard to find. More E series Amilcars ended up in South Australia than anywhere else in the world.
Sold alongside the CS as a larger car with a few more comforts, mostly tourer bodies. The big change was a longer wheelbase and a four-shoe rear axle, one pair for the foot brake and one for the handbrake, in slightly wider drums. Most had a differential. Late cars got the larger G-series steering box, and some came with front brakes; only one of those survives. Some say the C4 is the most reliable and friendly Amilcar ever built.
The car that made Amilcar famous, and in Australia the fast road and racing model of the 1920s. Four-wheel brakes, pressure lubrication and updated steering made it far more refined than the earlier cars. Power was modest against some vintage rivals, but its handling and brakes were better than any other car of the era. In the 1940s young racers often fitted larger engines to stay competitive.
A larger, heavier version of the CGS, using essentially the same engine but with bigger brakes. A lot of them were cut up and turned into specials, because the engine was generally considered underpowered for the chassis, although some owners beg to differ.
An evolution of the CGS with a hotter camshaft, a shorter wheelbase, larger brakes and a lower stance. The extra "s" stands for surbaissé, French for lowered. Only standard-stroke cars came here. There may be just one in Australia with its imported Duval body; local coachbuilders bodied the rest.
The Agents
Automobiles Limited in Grote Street was the first declared Amilcar agency in South Australia, under managing director Hiram M. Drummond. Registrations from early 1923 and South Australian engine numbers point to shipments from France in 1922.
The first press reference so far found is in The News of 29 July 1924, describing a chassis fitted with an Australian sports body, to be sold complete in blue or red enamel on five wire wheels.
The agency later took Drummond's name. Drummond's Autos Limited traded from the north-western corner of Light Square, and by 1929 from larger premises at 101 Franklin Street, with a Broken Hill agency from early 1925. At one point in 1926 they claimed to be delivering a car a day. Besides Amilcars they sold Flint, Moon, Armstrong Siddeley and Trojan.
H.M. Drummond, managing director. H.C. Simpson, secretary and assistant manager. R. Sefton, new car sales. H. Hennessy, used cars. P.M. "Pompy" Pederson, service manager, famous for record runs and racing in Amilcars, including the Adelaide to Broken Hill record in 1925.
In October 1925 Drummond's called the first meeting of the Amilcar Owners Club, at 7.45 pm on the 21st. It was well attended.
The Depression closed the business; the exact date isn't known, but a C4 tourer with Richards coachwork dates from 1927 and advertising continued into 1928. Drummond used city-to-city records, night trials and reliability trials to sell these voiturettes across the State. More E-series Amilcars ended up in South Australia than anywhere else in the world, and Adelaide is still well supplied today.
The brass and nickel Drummond's plaque was fixed to the dashboard of customers' cars. Our version was restored from a battered example removed from a 1925 G-series car.
Notable Australian Amilcars
Rare in Australia, let alone the world. The car sat in a French wrecking yard and came to light after the Malpasset dam collapse in December 1959, which ruined its faux-cabriolet body. An open Weymann-style body was built as a copy of a UK car known from a photograph.
Possibly rescued by Bryan Goodman, then President of the Amilcar Register in the UK, it passed to David Johnson in October 1968. Graeme Steinfort saw it advertised in the June 1971 Motor Sport and bought it for £1,100. A broken conrod in the late 1970s led to a sale to Richard Creed, and later to his father-in-law. The current owner bought it from the widow of the late Austin Tope, minus a box of engine parts that went missing. The lost parts have been remade and the engine is nearly ready to go back together.
Owned by Richard Fewster of Renmark, with history traceable to 1928. It was imported through Drummond's with an Eldridge radiator cowl and an overhead-valve conversion, and unlike most Amilcars, which arrived as chassis, it wears an original French Duval body. It raced at local tracks including Smithfield in 1928.
Notable for its body. Since the late 1950s many tourers and roadsters have had their bodies removed for pointy-tailed sporting shells. They may look better and be worth more, but history is being destroyed. This car keeps its TJ Richards of Adelaide four-seat, three-door body.
The late Kevin Shearer found it at Port Adelaide in the 1950s. It was his first Amilcar, and it started one of the largest Amilcar collections in Australia. Kevin restored it and used it with his young family. After Kevin's wife Joan put it on the market, Angus Mitchell bought it to use with his own family.
For years a neat little square tail light with a round lens, fitted mainly to Australian Amilcars, was thought to be an Australian trade item, a theory UK Amilcarists insisted on. Its metric globe threads already made that doubtful, since Australia was imperial until the late 1960s.
Then a new old stock example turned up in a lot of lights on eBay France. After a bidding frenzy it arrived, identical to the lights on our CGSs and never fitted to a car. The light is French, and was probably made for years after the Amilcar factory closed. You never know what you might find.
Where are they now?
If you know anything about these cars, please get in touch.
Lost for years in a Melbourne shed, completely dismantled. Ron Davis owned it for 40 years, having bought it from Miss Marjorie Horne, who also owned a Bugatti Type 40. Miss Horne campaigned the Amilcar at local hill climbs and was photographed under the sign at the start of the Great Ocean Road in the 1920s. It carries the only known surviving Melbourne-built Hotchkiss aluminium body.
Angus Mitchell bought it after a short chase against buyers from Australian Bugatti circles. The chassis hung in the roof of an outdoor shed and the rear axle sat upside down under a loose sheet of iron, full of water. Every component proved original and correctly numbered, rear axle 533, plus spares. A G-series chassis turned special was found there too, with a tree growing through it.
An all-original T.J. Richards roadster with dicky seat and original tools. Terry Michael bought it from Bill Jamieson in the late 1980s. It was last seen at the Mitcham Shopping Centre car park before an All French Day, and photographed at a French car rally in 1991 when Terry lived at Vale Park. Neither has been seen since.
Sold by the Winch family, repainted orange, and put on eBay in Adelaide without being offered to the local Amilcar or vintage community. It went to a US auction house and appears to have since turned up in France.
Parts
Made in Adelaide to original patterns or better. Most parts are made to order. Send an enquiry for pricing and lead times, or call Angus on 0421 358 110. We ship worldwide.
Brand new, fully machined, finished to your piston bore size. Complete turn-key engines available.
Pressure-fed · suits CGS, CGSs, G · retrofits CC, C4, CS
Custom-made billet crankshaft. Will last you three lifetimes.
CNC machined, standard compression, quality rings with chrome option, offset pins for quiet running.
Bore 58–62 mm
Billet aluminium at about 3.5 kg against the original 11.5 kg, a saving of over 7 kg. Made to suit a Kevlar clutch, with bolt-on end-float adjustment.
$1,300
Quality polyurethane, for a smooth drive.
CC, CS, C4, CGS, CGSs
A sacrificial part that protects the block from corrosion, and they don't last long. Made from our own pattern.
Splash-fed CC, CS, C4 · pressure-fed CGS, CGSs
Custom made to your requirements, with an undercut stem for better flow.
Fully machined and heat treated.
Ducellier or Blériot starters
CNC billet, polish or blast for an original look. Won't fracture like the originals.
All models to 1929
CNC billet, drilled for levers and designed to take modern Kraus & Naimer switches.
Amilcar and other French cars
Lost-wax reproductions of the Ducellier levers with correct thumb knurling. Priced per lever.
Same as original, 12 mm across the flats. Batches of 1,000.
Gallery
Amilcars at work and play in Australia, from period photographs to recent runs.
Noticeboard
The latest from the Amilcar Australia Facebook page, where news is posted first.
Rebuilt engine, new tyres, runs well.
$27,000
Contact us for details, or call Rex on 0412 813 415.
Needs a little work to complete. Many spares included, possibly enough for the basis of a second car. Contact Garth on 0417 484 858.
Two pressure-type blocks (one cracked at the rear main), rear main housing, front main sleeve, three usable crankshafts, two camshafts and more. Contact Brian via the Facebook page.
Not cheap, but where do you get another one? Call Angus.
Author of one of our best-known Australian Amilcar reference books, Bill passed away aged 96. A life lived fully and full of interesting old cars.
A quick lap around the block before Sunday's run. Video on the Facebook page.
Touring the old Woodside circuit in the Adelaide Hills, where George Blythman raced his Amilcar at the first meeting in 1947.
Renmark · 22–25 April 2027
After the 2022 Amilcar centenary rally, we're running it again on the same Riverland roads, this time for all pre-war sporting cars. The rally finishes on Anzac Day, starting with a dawn service. Expressions of interest are open now.
Fill in the short registration form with your details and your car, and Angus will be in touch with entry information. Prefer to talk? Call Angus on 0421 358 110.
Contact
For parts, cars, history enquiries or the rally. For servicing and restoration of your Amilcar, visit the workshop at Mitchell Automotive.