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47 minutes ago, Lelmer said:

You have got the first letters on #20839...😊

I did notice the 'FR(O?)' as well as the Ford plaque but the only US-based car manufacturer from around those days whose name might fit was 'Frontmobile' who were a New Jersey company.

Curiously, earlier on (it's a relatively quiet day!), I found a Michigan-made car with what appear to be the very same style of fender/mudguard as seen on the mystery car; by which I mean the apron-like extensions which project forward- and below the flat surface. That vehicle was the Havers Six-44 "Knickerbocker Speedster" but those date to 1913 and all featured engines from 'Continental' which seems at odds with the 'Ford' dash-plaque on the Mystery.

Still having a wee www search as and when time allows!

Philip.

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The only make that springs to mind is Frontenac. There were two different makers using this name but given the date of 1915, likely to be the second company formed by Louis Chevrolet. 

Wilson

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You got it, Wilson. It is a Frontenac, powered by a 4-cyl Ford engine. I don't know the exact model, it might well be a unique one.

I took the pictures during the 2008 "circuit des Ardennes" commemoration. 

https://www.circuit-ardennes.be/en/circuit-des-ardennes-history/

https://www.circuit-ardennes.be/en/commemorations-2002-2014/2008-commemoration/

My sons were with me, and the youngest one liked this car a lot...it reminded him a comics car 😊

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I think Louis Chevrolet might have died racing one of them. As usual may I throw the posting of a new mystery car open to everyone. For some reason my brain kept insisting that the car was a Fronsac, which of course is a commune in France on the Dordogne River, whereas Frontenac is a famous hotel in Quebec (Chateau de Frontenac). 

Wilson

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1 hour ago, wlaidlaw said:

I think Louis Chevrolet might have died racing one of them. As usual may I throw the posting of a new mystery car open to everyone. For some reason my brain kept insisting that the car was a Fronsac, which of course is a commune in France on the Dordogne River, whereas Frontenac is a famous hotel in Quebec (Chateau de Frontenac). 

Wilson

Right, one of the Chevrolet's brother died in 1920 racing a Frontenac car, but I read it was Gaston (Louis and Arthur's brother).

I guess I know why your brain keeps insisting on Fronsac...🙂

https://www.vins-fronsac.com/en/

 

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14 hours ago, Lelmer said:

...I guess I know why your brain keeps insisting on Fronsac...🙂...

And jolly nice stuff it is, too!

OK; to keep things going here's a fun little runabout. Pretty much all parts of the car are rather distinctive so hopefully this isn't going to be far too easy. I'm not 100% sure about the full details regarding the thing myself so simply give as much as you can...

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Philip.

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7 hours ago, stuny said:

......I look forward to seeing more......

Your wish is my command!

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Philip.

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3 hours ago, stuny said:

I was beginning to think Bentley Continental GT (they are all over the place in the French Riviera and Monaco), but the side rear window seems off for that.

I believe you abandoned that line of thought prematurely.........I think you were correct in suspecting it to be a Bentley Continental GT, but I think it's a later version of the original model which came out in 2003, namely a GT Speed  V8 version, introduced in 2018, which had a different powertrain with more HP as well as minor changes in sheet metal & appearance.

My guess therefore is that it is a Bentley Continental Coupe, specifically a 2018 + Bentley GT Speed model.

The way these things depreciate I have been seriously considering buying a perfectly good used & professionally inspected one as my last 'enthusiast / collector car' and as insurance that I get to enjoy everything I have loved about internal combustion-powered sporty automobiles to the very end of my driving days, which at 84+ shouldn't  be too far off into the future.

JZG

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4 hours ago, stuny said:

I was beginning to think Bentley Continental GT (they are all over the place in the French Riviera and Monaco), but the side rear window seems off for that.

And you were 100% correct with your original thought, Stuart! It is indeed a Bentley Continental GT. As far as being 'ubiquitous' goes I have read that, apparently, Bentley have created some 80,000+ of the species since their debut in 2003. Quite something for such a vehicle!

1 hour ago, Ivan Goriup said:

I believe you abandoned that line of thought prematurely.........I think you were correct in suspecting it to be a Bentley Continental GT, but I think it's a later version of the original model which came out in 2003, namely a GT Speed  V8 version...

Oddly enough no, Ivan, the car in question is one of the very early examples and dates to 2006.

As it happens I've always had a soft-spot for these cars. Long story but I was part of a photo-crew in, erm, Crewe documenting the fabrication of these cars before they were announced. It was all very cloak-and-dagger and the whole day visiting the place was a very special experience.

Final snap showing full vehicle looking very much at home in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea;

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Thanks to everyone for playing and over to Stuart for the next conundrum!

Philip.

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20 hours ago, Ivan Goriup said:

I believe you abandoned that line of thought prematurely.........I think you were correct in suspecting it to be a Bentley Continental GT, but I think it's a later version of the original model which came out in 2003, namely a GT Speed  V8 version, introduced in 2018, which had a different powertrain with more HP as well as minor changes in sheet metal & appearance.

My guess therefore is that it is a Bentley Continental Coupe, specifically a 2018 + Bentley GT Speed model.

The way these things depreciate I have been seriously considering buying a perfectly good used & professionally inspected one as my last 'enthusiast / collector car' and as insurance that I get to enjoy everything I have loved about internal combustion-powered sporty automobiles to the very end of my driving days, which at 84+ shouldn't  be too far off into the future.

JZG

Ivan -

I encourage you to go ahead with the used Bentley - It sounds like a good plan.  Then when I'm out that way in the spring you can demonstrate it to me.

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Thank you, Philip.

Let's go back to something vintage.  All the usuals, plus extra points for telling us who used to own it.

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Oaky, we know it's not Italian, not owned at one time by Harpo (or other) Marx, and is a bit younger than 1921, so it seems time for a wider crop and another hint.

The car is European from a manufacturer still making cars.

 

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