Beschreibung:

In 1916 Joseph Monet and Adrien Goyon commenced manufacture of un-powered tricycles for disabled servicemen injured in The Great War, an activity they would maintain until 1939. The Macon-based company built its first powered two-wheeler circa 1919 when it obtained rights to the Wall Autowheel, a self-contained, motorised wheel that attached to a bicycle, and this same engine was also used to power the Automouche (‘motor fly’) tricycle and the Vélauto scooter. These two models were upgraded with Villiers power units in the early 1920s when Monet-Goyon obtained the licence for the manufacture of one of the British-built two-strokes, and henceforth the French firm would be one of Villiers’ best customers in Continental Europe. Four-stroke models powered by Swiss-built MAG engines were added to the range in 1927, but arguably the most successful Monet-Goyon of all was the super-sports ‘ZS’ that used a 175cc Villiers ‘Brooklands TT’ motor to capture a string of French National Championships and World Speed Records in the 1920s. In 1929 the rival firm of Koehler-Escoffier was acquired and the latter’s engines found their way into various Monet-Goyons while Koehler-Escoffier continued to produce its own distinct models. Immediately after WW2 the two firms’ ranges were amalgamated and from then onwards the combined enterprise concentrated on producing small capacity Villiers-powered lightweights under both the Monet-Goyon and Koehler-Escoffier badges. The company closed in 1959. This Automouche tricycle has a single-cylinder 250cc engine and tandem seating, although on some examples the passenger faced backwards and the fuel tank was positioned between the two seats and not at the rear as in this case. The machine was purchased from a museum in Northern France in the 1990s and underwent full restoration by Tony Seal in Yorkshire during 1994/95. Presented in good condition throughout, this unusual vintage tricycle is offered with VMCC Dating Certificate (no. 8331) and Swansea V5 registration document.