Chappe et Gessalin
 |
|
| Industry | Automobile manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Fate | Bankruptcy and closed. Spring 1974 |
| Founded | 1966 |
| Founder | Abel, Albert and Louis Chappe Jean Gessalin |
| Defunct | 1974 |
| Headquarters | Brie-Comte-Robert, France |
Chappe et Gessalin is the short-form of the name of French coachbuilder "Carrosserie Chappe Frères et Gessalin". The company built automobile bodies and did contract assembly for other automobile manufacturers. It was also the parent of Automobiles CG, a French automobile maker founded in 1966 which built and sold complete cars under its own name.
The story of Chappe et Gessalin begins in 1932, in the commune of Saint-Maur-des-Fosses near Paris. In that year the Carrosserie Chappe was founded by Jean Chappe. Working with him are his three sons, Abel, Albert and Louis and an apprentice, Amédée Gessalin. The shop does bodywork in both wood and steel.
The Second World War interrupts the company's activities for a time but they resume at the end of hostilities. In 1946 Jean sells the carrosserie to his three sons. By that time Amédée is also a part of the family, having married the Chappe's eldest daughter Marie-Louise. The brothers add his name to the masthead and the company becomes "Carrosserie Chappe Frères et Gessalin". On the death of Amédée his son Jean takes his father's place in the company.
The new company's work included commercial vehicles, a specialty being the construction of firetruck bodies on truck frames produced by Delahaye. They also carve out a niche doing more specialized work, such as bodywork in duralumin for Talbot and repairs on the Delahaye 135, 136 and Talbot T26 racing cars owned by Charles Pozzi, who would become a major dealer in Ferrari and Maserati cars.
Before his death Amédée Gessalin taught his son how to draw and plan vehicles. Jean, an admirer of great Parisian designers Chapron and Figoni, works on honing his own skills by attending evening classes taught by these men.
Chappe et Gessalin provided the aluminum bodywork for the Bosvin-Michel Speciale (BMS) throughout its many revisions. This car was designed and built by Camille Bosvin and driven by Guy Michel. It had a tubular-steel frame and was noteworthy in being one of the first cars to mount its engine (from a Renault 4CV) amidships. The BMS was a regular at Montlhéry, and won the Bol d'Or in 1952 and 1953.
Another project that Chappe et Gessalin were involved with was the SCVS-DB specials. These cars, given chassis numbers 1065 and 1066 by Renault, were initially a project of Renault dealers Jean Rédélé and Louis Pons. The cars were built by the small French firm of Deutsch-Bonnet with aluminum bodywork by Chappe et Gessalin. Power came from a Renault 4CV engine. One of the cars appeared at Le Mans in 1953.
...
Wikipedia