SpeedReaders.info

Authoritative reviews of transportation books and media

Archives for: July 2010, 13

07/13/10

03:57:37 pm, by sabu advani

, 1058 words, 38 views

Categories: Automobiles, History, Biography/ Autobiography

André Lefebvre by G-P Berk 

André Lefebvre and the Cars He Created for Voisin and Citroën 
by Gijsbert-Paul Berk 

I admit to being heretofore unaware of the importance of André Lefebvre (1894–1964). There are two reasons I knew so little about this brilliant and accomplished French engineer. According to the author the first is that engineers, particularly in France, work more or less incognito. The second is that in 1958, Lefebvre suffered a stroke which prevented him from writing his memoirs. And he wasn’t one for self promotion anyway. For an American audience there is surely a third: few people today are cognizant of any type of French car let alone the people behind them.

Berk has gone to considerable lengths to bring us Lefebvre’s very interesting story. In addition to his work at Voisin, Lefebvre was in large part responsible for the Citroën Traction Avant, the H series trucks and vans, the 2CV and the DS—to have been responsible for just one of these cars would be worthy of nomination to the Engineering Hall of Fame! (Berk refrains from hero worship and gives plenty of credit and ink to the many engineers and managers who were as instrumental as Lefebvre.)