The Rochet-Schneider 26-Six n°26539 : the only RS 26-Six Limousine

At the beginning of the 20th century, Rochet-Schneider was one of the ten most important brands in the world. Their exceptional quality was at the heart of the Rochet-Schneider’s reputation. In 1931, in « la Vie de l’Automobile », the columist concluded his presentation as follows : « As can be seen, the manufacturers of Lyon wanted their cars to be perfect in all respects, and we have to admit that they have reached their goal. »

But quality comes at a cost, and the activity of Rochet-Schneider as a car manufacturer ended with the economic crisis of the early 1930s. In 1929, Rochet-Schneider presented its exceptional “26-Six De Luxe” at the “Salon de Paris”. Only a few copies, perhaps three or four, had been built. As far as we know, the 26-Six n°26539 is the only chassis with a Limousine body. She symbolizes more than any other the swan song of the brand.

Belonged to the famous Serge Pozzoli’s collection in recent history

The car is especially known to have belonged for decades to the famous French collector Serge Pozzoli and also to have been exhibited for a long time in the Le Mans museum.
In an article from the end of the 60’s, Serge Pozzoli wrote: “the dashboard is equipped with a lot of instruments, the driver told me that he was driving at 125 km/h […] You can admire it now in the Le Mans museum. It is the only known 26 CV of the Lyon firm“.

Serge Pozzoli died in 1992 and his collection has been dispersed. The forty-one most beautiful pieces were sold at auction in February 1994. The Rochet-Schneider 26539 had the number 16.
She was bought by a collector, then resold and she finally entered the JWA-Classic collection in 2009 to be restored.

She was no longer in very good condition. All its windows had become opaque, the paint was very damaged and the upholstery had suffered a lot from the last years of storage.

In the early 30’s, it was first owned by an English doctor in south of France

But long before all these years, in the early 30’s, the first owner of the car was an English doctor living in France, Doctor Stanley Morton Rendall, married to Clara Louisa Moulton. Dr. Rendall was a climatologist and obstetric specialist.
The car has been registered (8902 BA1) for the first time in Menton, near Nice, in the south of France. In addition to their house in Menton, the Rendall couple owned a villa in Aix-les-Bains, in the French Alps, since the late 1880s. In 1933, Dr. Rendall moved and the registration increased from “8902 BA 1” to “4358 QR 1”.

In Aix-les-Bains, the Stanley-Rendall villa was demolished in the early 1940s. At the end of the 1960s, all the buildings on the estate were destroyed. Other buildings were erected but the name “Stanley Rendal” remained.

The second owner was a layer, Otto Mantoux, in Algeria

The second owner was a lawyer, Otto Mantoux, who lived in Algeria. The car registration changed but then returned to mainland France a few years later. In 1954, the registration changed again, but the car remained in the Mantoux family.

We don’t know the year in which the car entered Serge Pozzoli’s collection but we know that it was there in the 1960s.

Your questions are welcome.

The restoration began in 2011, on a very sound base that had not been previously restored, thus enabling to restore very close to the original.
After the very first disassemblies, we saw that the state of the mechanics were relatively satisfactory.
But for the rest:
– the windows had to be changed
– all interior fabrics and leathers had been destroyed by years of storage
– the instrumentation and electrical circuits needed to be restored.

The engine was started and the car was able to run, after a first warm-up, for a few kilometers but without a windshield.

You’ll find below some of the (too?) many pictures we took all along the restoration process by JWA Classic :
Disassembling the car – Bodyshell – Fabrik & Leather

As we mentioned in the introduction, we are particularly proud of the work done as our restoration work has been rewarded with no more than three prizes at the 2011 Deauville Concours d’Elegance : the Volant d’Or, the Best of Show and the jury’s’ Grand Prix for the best restoration !

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Disassembling the car

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Bodyshell

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Fabrik & Leather

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• Brand : Rochet-Schneider
• Type : 26 SIX (Série 29500 A)
• Coachbuilder : Billeter et Cartier in Lyon, France
• Motor : 6-cylinder in-line, dual ignition
• Year : 1930
• Fiscal power : 26 CV
• Chassis number : 29 539 (lengthened chassis)

“La Voiture de Qualité“:

This is how Pierre-Lucien Pouzet recalls the R-S 26-Six in his book : « Rochet-Schneider un Grand Constructeur d’Automobiles à Lyon », and this is not surprising :
– Double ignition ( by magneto and coil ) which can be used separately or simultaneously
– Brakes with internal frictions and assistance
– Lubricating oil purifier with double oil pumps
– The oil cooler can be disengaged during cold weather
– Double barrel carburettor with automatic connection at high speeds
– Centralised greasing by foot pedal
– An aviation type instrument panel

Chassis :

If you need a better version of the document, please contact us at contact@jwaclassic.com

La Vie Automobile du 25 septembre 1929

La Vie Automobile du 12 décembre 1929

L’Album du Fanatique de l’Automobile (Late 60’s)

Serge Pozzoli had created the magazine “L’album du Fanatique de l’Automobile” in the 60s. At the beginning of the series, each of the first issues was dedicated in the description of vehicles of different brands. For Rochet-Schneider, he only mentions the 26-Six model. He speaks more particularly about our Limousine which remained several decades in his collection.

1929-1930 – La Plaquette de Luxe

1930 – La Brochure des Qualités

1994 – La Vente Pozzoli du 19 février 1994