Founded in 1883, De Dion-Bouton originally developed a steam-powered tricycle. However, it was the development from 1895 of a range of reliable, lightweight, and comparatively high-revving internal combustion engines that attracted the attention of cycle manufacturers and created the motor tricycle marketplace. As the formula evolved, French engineer Ernest Chenard crafted a detachable seat to allow a passenger to also revel in the experience. But the added weight over a single front wheel made steering somewhat erratic. De Dion-Bouton’s solution was to introduce an interchangeable two-wheeled front axle.

Chassis number 3157 offered here was reportedly found and bought in France in 1965 by a Dutch marque enthusiast. Over the next six decades, the Tricycle entered the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run on no fewer than 17 occasions in addition to participating in many other short- and long-distance European events up until the owner’s death. The automobile being extremely well-known to the vendors, they purchased it to extend its stay in the Netherlands.

Following the De Dion-Bouton’s extensive use over the years, the owner decided it was ready for a restoration, with working starting circa 2015. Accordingly, it sports revitalised black paintwork, black upholstery, and plating. While previously enjoyed predominantly as a Quadricycle, chassis 3157 can still be converted into a Tricycle. It is offered with the two-wheel front axle, requisite four bolt fixings, and passenger seat with footrest.

Between 1895 and 1902, De Dion-Bouton offered no fewer than nine engine types for the Tricycle. This example, which has been dated to 1901 by the Veteran Car Club of Great Britain, is fitted with the final iteration. Introduced from May 1900, a 2.75 horsepower water-cooled single-cylinder motor displacing 327 cc is mated to a two-speed Bozier gearbox for a claimed range of between 50 and 60 miles. Per a De Dion-Bouton advertisement of the time: “It is geared down low and is capable of climbing almost any hill without pedalling, and up very stiff hills with very slight assistance from the pedals.”

Cherished by knowledgeable enthusiasts in the Netherlands since the late 1960s, this De Dion-Bouton would be a prime candidate for further participations in veteran tours under the care of its next custodian and is duly sold with an entry into the 2025 London to Brighton.