SALMSON SHELTERING FROM THE RAIN

I have had a lifelong love affair with cars, particularly cars from the beginning of the Twentieth Century to the beginning of the Second World War. I have worked for customers verifying when cars were made, what their exact specifications were and the owners individual cars histories from first owner to them taking ownership, this usually included changes in bodies and body colours and changes in engines. I have also sourced and provided drawings for a number of independent restorers or coachbuilders to either renovate or produce alternative new bodies that the particular make and model of cars would have been fitted with when they were first built. These bodies almost always comprised of a wood structure on which the metal provided a skin. The makes have included Lagonda, Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Triumph, Humber to name but a few.
As a result of this work I became involved in taking photographs as clues to a cars history or to work out with a coachbuilder what had to be done to make a car fit for purpose or to meet a customers wishes. This led me to take reasonable numbers of photographs of what I consider interesting cars with interesting histories. The Salmson was originally built at Billancourt near Paris and definitely fits into that category, being what was a light sports car, but became more highly regarded both at the time and now. It is always easily recongnisable by the St. Andrew’s Cross motif on its radiator.
This particular photograph is one of the more atmospheric that I have taken. The Salmson car was parked under a tree at the Cadwell Park circuit near Louth in Licolnshire, where I had gone to see a day of Vintage car racing. The car had been parked under the tree to keep it dry. You can also see that the driver has placed his seat on the ground under the car in a further attempt to keep it dry.

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