3 Rare Citroëns at Bonhams — Retromobile

January 28, 2025

3 Rare Citroëns are to be auctioned by Bonhams at Retromobile in Paris on February 6, 2025. Les Grandes Marques du Monde à Paris will take place at 2 PM in The Grand Palais Historique.

1956 2CV AZ — Lot # 146
Estimate: €15,000 – €25,000 — To be sold without reserve.

Chassis no. 266159

This early example is offered with Spanish registration papers. It has been “sympathetically freshened”.

1962 DS 19 Concorde – Coachwork by Henri Chapron — Lot # 158

Estimate: €100,000 – €150,000 — To be sold without reserve.

Chassis no. 4200344

One of only 38 built by Henri Chapron. Originally entrusted to the Chapron workshops on 6 February 1962 as a Citroën DS Cabriolet, chassis #4200344, this Concorde was delivered in April of that year to its first owner in La Varenne-Saint-Hilaire, an elegant suburb of Paris. Prior to delivery, it made its public debut on Chapron’s stand at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1962.

The car’s current owner acquired it at auction in 2017, where it was offered by a German Citroën dealer and DS aficionado. Renowned for his expertise, the dealer undertook an uncompromising restoration to return the car to its original splendour. Several body panels were meticulously fabricated and reassembled, the interior was entirely refurbished, including the upholstery, and the mechanical components were comprehensively overhauled.

This rare Concorde is accompanied by a cancelled French registration document dated 19 July 1974, which records changes of ownership in 1972, 1984, and 2017, as well as a Japanese customs document.

1972 Ligier JS2 — Lot # 154

Estimate: €60,000 – €90,000 — To be sold without reserve.

Chassis no. 24767203

Today Ligier is best remembered for its 20 years representing France in Formula 1 (1976-1996). Before then, the company founded by former rugby player-turned-motor manufacturer Guy Ligier built road-going sports cars, principally the JS2. First seen in production form at the 1971 Paris Salon, Ligier’s lightweight coupé was powered by the Maserati-developed 2.7-litre (later 3.0-litre) four-cam V6 engine from the Citroën SM, which was mounted in a composite (steel/polyurethane) backbone chassis. Only some 250-or-so had been built when production ceased in 1975.

Strikingly finished in yellow and presented in lovely condition, this rare French sports car was owned in France by a Mr Lazaro from 1999 to 2015 when it was acquired by the vendor. Since then it has formed part of his important collection in Belgium. The JS2 retains its old French registration plates and comes with a 2012 contrôle technique; the 2015 purchase invoice; and a cancelled French Carte Grise (the current owner has never registered the car in his name).