René Bonnet (

Vaumas Vaumas is a commune in the Allier department in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in central France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and t ...

, 27 December 1904 – 13 January 1983) was a French driver and automobile constructor.

Early life

The young René first learned about machines working with his father, a carpenter. By 1915, with most teachers conscripted, René left school and started work, first as a farmhand and later in factories, eventually making his way to Paris. Bonnet was a capable athlete, playing

right winger A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for the local

Dompierre-sur-Besbre Dompierre-sur-Besbre (, literally ''Dompierre on Besbre'') is a commune in the Allier department in central France. Le Pal is an animal theme park in the municipality area of Saint-Pourçain-sur-Besbre, close to Dompierre-sur-Besbre. Populati ...

football team. In 1925 he joined the Navy "to see the oceans", where a sadistic officer made him dive into a shallow pool, causing him a back injury which was to trouble him for the rest of his life. Diagnosed with tuberculosis of the bones, he spent some time in sanatoriums, where he learned how to make shawls. Savage (1993), p. 6 By 1929 he was back in his hometown of Vaumas, eking out a meagre living at this trade. His life really began to change soon thereafter when his sister asked René to come assist her in running the small garage which had become her responsibility after her husband's recent death. The garage was also a Rosengart dealer, although they had not yet managed to sell a single car when René took over. He proved an adept salesman and soon also became a Citroën dealer, a much more profitable agency. In October 1932, he bought a small coachworker called "La Maison Deutsch" from the founder's widow. The founder's 21-year-old son,

Charles Deutsch Charles Deutsch (1911–1980) was a French aerodynamics engineer and automobile maker, founder of the brand " DB" with René Bonnet, and later of the "CD". Early history Deutsch was born at Champigny-sur-Marne on 6 September 1911. His father was ...

continued to work for Bonnet and the two were to develop a long and fruitful collaboration.

Building cars

He started building race cars in 1936 with

and in 1946 they founded Deutsch et Bonnet in

Champigny-sur-Marne Champigny-sur-Marne (, literally ''Champigny on Marne'') is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Name Champigny-sur-Marne was originally called simply Champigny. The name Champigny ulti ...

, using

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 ...

and

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 ...

mechanics. They separated in 1961 and René Bonnet founded the firm

Automobiles René Bonnet Automobiles René Bonnet was a French automobile maker. The firm was the continuation of Deutsch et Bonnet (DB) by René Bonnet when Charles Deutsch, the "D" in DB, founded his own firm CD. The business was based at Champigny-sur-Marne to the ...

Romorantin Romorantin is a traditional French variety of white wine grape, that is a sibling of Chardonnay. Once quite widely grown in the Loire, it has now only seen in the Cour-Cheverny AOC. It produces intense, minerally wines somewhat reminiscent of ...

. Bonnet created the world's first road-legal

mid-engined In automotive engineering, a mid-engine layout describes the placement of an automobile engine in front of the rear-wheel axles, but behind the front axle. History The mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive format can be considered the original layout of ...

sports car A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by ...

, powered by

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...

mechanics: the René Bonnet Djet http://www.automobile-sportive.com/guide/matra/djet.php. The Djet had a significant racing career at Sebring, Le Mans, the Nürburgring (in 1962, a Djet finished 20th and 1st in its class) and in many rallies including the Tour de France Automobile http://www.club-djet.com/histoire/histoire.htm. There was also a convertible called the "Missile", which sported tailfins. This car, however, was a commercial failure in spite of its performance. As a result of this, Automobiles René Bonnet came into financial trouble and he was forced to sell the company to its supplier

Matra Matra (an acronym for Mécanique Aviation Traction) was a French industrial conglomerate. During its years of operation, it was engaged in a wide range of business activities, primarily focused around automobiles, bicycles, aeronautics and we ...

in October 1964. Bonnet never returned to the automobile industry afterwards,De René BONNET à MATRA SPORTS
but the Djet and Missiles remained in production by Matra. René Bonnet died in an automobile accident on 13 January 1983, aged 78. He is buried in Champigny-sur-Marne.

References

1904 births 1983 deaths Sportspeople from Allier French automotive pioneers {{France-autoracing-bio-stub