Photos by the author.
[Editor’s Note: Ronan Glon of Ran When Parked did us a favor earlier this month by taking in the Epoqu’Auto show in Lyon, France, and filing this report.]
Classic car collectors and enthusiasts recently gathered in Lyon, France, to attend the 37th annual Epoqu’Auto car show. Once little more than a minor regional event, Epoqu’Auto has grown to become the Rétromobile of the south. Enthusiasts from France, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland trek out to Lyon every November to show off their pride and joy, take home a new project, or seek out hard-to-find bits and pieces.
The show is always split up into two parts. The first part takes place inside a massive convention center where car clubs and car manufacturers — including Renault and Peugeot-Citroën’s newly-emancipated DS brand — are invited to display classic cars from absolutely all eras. Vendors big and small are also sardined into the convention center to sell parts, models, books, trailers, repair manuals, and so forth. Any item that’s even vaguely related to the world of classic cars is fair game to sell or trade at Epoqu’Auto.
One of the most interesting cars displayed inside the convention center this year was a 1923 Morgan Type C truckette that was built under license by a defunct French company called Darmont. Essentially a work-focused variant of Morgan’s three-wheeled Runabout, the Type C displayed in Lyon is one of just four Darmont-assembled examples believed to be left today, and it’s the only one that’s still wearing its original body.
A quick chat with the third and current owner revealed that the Type C was purchased new in Paris by a man who ran a small hardware store. While most Darmont-built truckettes were driven into the ground one short delivery at a time, this example has stood the test of time remarkably well because it was forgotten in one of Paris’ innumerable underground parking garages for decades.
Another unexpected find in the convention center was a Katar 4×4, a small off-roader largely built with components sourced from the Citroën parts bin. Introduced in France in 1987, the Katar 4×4 featured a composite body dropped on a 2CV frame, a Visa-sourced air-cooled flat-twin engine, a four-speed manual transmission borrowed from the Méhari, and a four-wheel drive system developed by Voisin. The basic, almost low-rent hinges that keep the hood shut reveal the two-seater’s artisanal construction.
The soft-roader was promising on paper, but its career came to an abrupt end when Citroën transferred 2CV production from France to Portugal in 1989 and consequently made it more difficult for small companies to buy parts directly from the factory. Roughly 200 examples of the Katar 4×4 were hand-built on the outskirts of Annonay, a small town located in the picturesque Ardèche department of France, over a two-year long production run.
The second part of the show is found by walking outside of the convention center. Visitors who arrive in a classic car are invited to park in a huge parking lot reserved for them, and it’s not uncommon to see over 300 classics on display if the sun is shining. What’s surprising as you walk through aisle after aisle of vintage cars is that it’s difficult to pin down a specific trend.
Anything goes at Epoqu’Auto. Enthusiasts can ogle cars that are perfectly restored, all original, in the middle of a restoration, or in dire need of one. The show’s organizers welcome crowd favorites like the original Fiat 500, unloved classics like the Renault 14, and anything in between. Where else can you see a like-new Buick Century parked next to a BMW M3 (e30) at a car show? Cars that were never designed to share the road spend the afternoon rubbing shoulders in the collector’s parking lot.
The first part of the show is all business; it’s loud, and financial transactions seemingly happen more often than on Wall Street. The second part is an open-air party; it’s where owners help each other fix mechanical issues encountered on the drive to Lyon, grab a drink and a bite to eat with other like-minded enthusiasts, and even buy and sell cars. This ambiance is what makes Epoqu’Auto stand out as one of the best car shows France has to offer.
Ronan Glon is an American auto journalist and historian based in France. When not behind his computer or his camera, he can generally be found tinkering with one of his vintage European cars.
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