Some people chose to deviate from the basic game plan: Dr. Ferry Porsche, the original, and Hans Ledwinka were probably the most notable among them. But more than any other individual, Émile Levassor established the historic layout of a powered automobile, with its engine up front, transmission aligned longitudinally just aft of it, and a jackshaft then sending power to the rear wheels. True, AndrÈ LefËbvre (CitroÎn Traction Avant) and Alec Issigonis (Austin/Morris Mini) delivered sharp blows to Levassorís basic design, but it took a subsequent Asian tsunami of side-engine front-drivers to ultimately dislodge it, at least for cars aimed at the masses.
His accomplishments in the automotive world, from design to driving race cars, are all the more remarkable because Levassor was deceased before the industry, especially beyond France, had gotten going in earnest. He was born in 1843 in the farm village of Marolles; he originally studied to become a mining engineer, but quit the field after learning he was poorly suited physically to long hours deep in the ground. He therefore enrolled in the École Central of Châlons-sur-Marne, arguably Franceís most prestigious technological academy at the time. He became friendly with RenÈ Panhard, a student with whom he graduated in 1864.
Post-graduation, Levassor made his way to Belgium, where he managed and then gained an interest in a firm that specialized in saws and drills. Both he and Panhard were independently engaged in sales engineering, and Levassor had become close to a Brussels attorney named Edouard Sarazin, who was an expert in patent litigation. In 1872, Panhard, based outside Paris, asked Levassor to become his engineering chief. Their relationship would grow into a partnership, as Panhard et Levassor was formed in 1886.
While Levassor was the engineering brilliance involved, and the public face of the company through his short-lived career as a racing star, Sarazin's role was utterly critical, even though he died around the time Panhard et Levassor was formed. Sarazin held the licensing rights for Daimler gasoline engines in France, and following his death, Levassor maintained close contact with Gottlieb Daimler. The first Panhard et Levassor, with Daimler power, appeared in 1890, but the definitive engine-forward design was built five years later.
By then, Levassor was widely known as a French racing star, having participated in a variety of early city-to-city races and winning the 1895 Paris-Bordeaux-Paris contest outright. The following year, he was in the Paris-Marseilles-Paris race when he swerved to miss a stray dog. The car rolled over on top of him, fracturing several ribs and causing unknown internal injuries. Levassor ignored them and returned to the factory. A few months later in early 1897, he was stricken, probably by a blood clot related to the crash, and died instantly.
This article originally appeared in the August, 2012 issue of Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car.
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