The Georges Irat was a French
automobile
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with Wheel, wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, pe ...
manufactured by
engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy.
Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...
builder Georges Irat from 1921 to 1953.
Between two World Wars
![Georges-irat](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Georges-irat.jpg)
The company's first product was an ohv 1990cc four-cylinder car designed by Maurice Gaultier who had been with
Delage
Delage was a French luxury automobile and racecar company founded in 1905 by Louis Delâge in Levallois-Perret near Paris; it was acquired by Delahaye in 1935 and ceased operation in 1953.
On 7 November 2019, the association "Les Amis de Dela ...
. This was joined in 1926 by a 2985 cc six-cylinder. The company turned to producing
Lycoming powered models in 1929, both sixes and eights; this was also the year in which they moved from
Chatou
Chatou () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Chatou is a part of the affluent suburbs of western Paris and is on the northwest side of the Seine river about from the city's center.
Histo ...
to
Neuilly
Neuilly (, ) is a common place name in France, deriving from the male given name
A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well ...
. A small car with 1086 cc four-cylinder engine and designed by George's son
Michel
Michel may refer to:
* Michel (name), a given name or surname of French origin (and list of people with the name)
* Míchel (nickname), a nickname (a list of people with the nickname, mainly Spanish footballers)
* Míchel (footballer, born 1963), ...
, was added to the range in 1929 but sales of this and the large cars were poor resulting in a financial crisis.
The manufacturer was partially taken over by Godefroy et Levecque, makers of the Ruby engine, in 1934, consequently moving to that company's works in
Levallois. Here they made two front-wheel-drive sporting roadsters, one with an 1100 cc Ruby and the other with a six-cylinder 2450 cc Lycoming engine. The smaller car sold well but there were few takers for the six. In 1938 a new sports car with a 1911 cc engine produced by
Citroën
Citroën () is a French automobile brand. The "Automobiles Citroën" manufacturing company was founded in March 1919 by André Citroën. Citroën is owned by Stellantis since 2021 and previously was part of the PSA Group after Peugeot acquired ...
with independent suspension using rubber springing on all wheels was announced but war broke out after about 200 had been made.
During the Second World War
After the outbreak of
war
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
, Georges Irat was among the first auto-makers to focus on electric cars,
there being diminishing quantities of oil based motor-fuel available for civilian use, especially after the
German invasion German invasion may refer to:
Pre-1900s
* German invasion of Hungary (1063)
World War I
* German invasion of Belgium (1914)
* German invasion of Luxembourg (1914)
World War II
* Invasion of Poland
* German invasion of Belgium (1940)
* G ...
in May/June 1940. An all-new electric car was designed during Summer 1940 and developed rapidly in order to be ready for public launch at the
Lyon Fair
The (; or Lyon Fair) is a trade fair, traditionally held in March in Lyon, France. Begun as an initiative by Lyon mayor Édouard Herriot in 1916, the fair has been held in the Eurexpo convention center in Chassieu since 1985.
History
The ...
during the autumn of 1941.
[ The little car was designed to be as light-weight as possible and the electric motor had a number of ingenious features. The vehicle had a top speed of 30–35 km/h (roughly 20 mph) and the lead battery provided for a range of 90-100 kilometres (nearly 60 miles) between charges.][ Both a small 2-seater cabriolet and a 2-seater mini-van were produced, although most of the rear portion of the car and indeed of the van was permanently occupied by the electric motor and batteries.][ The first few cars were produced for use by Georges Irat employees, but small batches of the cars were built for sale via an exclusive deal with a car dealer on the Rue de Passy on the western side of central ]Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
.[ After the end of 1942 significant levels of auto-production were no longer possible due to the non-availability of materials and labour for civilian production. Production of electric cars did not restart when ]peace
Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...
returned in 1945.
After the Second World War
A prototype with an 1100 cc flat four engine driving the front wheels was shown at the October 1946 Paris Salon. It reappeared at the 1947 Motor Show looking broadly similar but the front panels were slightly reworked and the headlights were covered over with an extra layer of glass in order to present a smoother profile. Under the bonnet/hood the engine had now been replaced by a 1996 cc 4-cylinder in-line unit featuring a twin overhead camshaft and driving, now, the rear wheels via a more conventional transmission.[ At this time the French auto-industry was subject to extensive government intervention, and in this dirigiste context Georges Irat thought that the larger-engined car might be classified by the government, which controlled supplies of materials necessary for auto-production, as an "exceptional car reserved in the first instance for export" ][... parmi les "''véhicles d'exception réservés en priorité a l'exportation''"] However, the car never entered production even though it re-appeared at the 1949 show.
In 1950 Georges Irat announced the VdB or "Voiture du Bled" made by a new company, Société Chérifienne George Irat in Casablanca, Morocco. This was a jeep-like three-seat vehicle powered by a rear-mounted Panhard
Panhard was a French motor vehicle manufacturer that began as one of the first makers of automobiles. It was a manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its final incarnation, now owned by Renault Trucks Defense, was formed ...
engine. Only a few were made up to 1953. The engine was originally of 610 cc and , which meant a top speed of . It could climb a 40% grade and ford a deep stream. The vehicle later received updated bodywork, and the car displayed at the 1953 Paris Show had a 745 cc version of the Panhard engine, producing . With and in reserve, the effective range of the VdB was . It was rear-wheel drive only, but had a locking differential
A locking differential is a mechanical component, commonly used in vehicles, designed to overcome the chief limitation of a standard open differential by essentially "locking" both wheels on an axle together as if on a common shaft. This forces ...
and a low gear transfer case for its three-speed gearbox.[
]
References
*David Burgess Wise, ''The New Illustrated Encyclopedia of Automobiles''
{{commons category, Georges Irat cars
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of France