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After producing biplanes and launching a sucessful aviation company, the Farman brothers entered the car business as a manufacturer in 1919. They also operated one of the largest garages in Paris and contested many city to city races which helped when they had to market their own designs.

The first Farman was called the A6 and focused on luxury as well as the high standards set for aircraft manufacturing. This meant the finish was kept to very high grade and included high quality materials such as aluminum.

The A6 was initially previewed at the 1919 Paris Auto Salon. It was powered by a complex 6-liter six-cylinder engine that used separate steel cylinders surrounded by a steel water jacket and an overhead camshaft. Later, Alpax alloy cylinder blocks were offered on the Super Sport model.

Deciding “to make an automobile absolutely perfect in every detail” the Farman was expensive and used much aluminum. Construction of the chassis details were limited to steel stampings and forged alloy instead of crude iron castings. It was sold as a direct rival to Hispano-Suiza and gained an edge with its 4-speed tranmission.

Flaunted on the Champs Elysées, the Farman A6 attracted clientele such as film star Pearl White, the Shah of Persia, the Sultan of Morocco and World War One air pilot Charles Nungesser. Many of these owners purchased bodywork from the established coachbuilders of Paris, so no two Farmans looked alike. However, they all shared the same radiator and its mascot, a tribute to of Alberto Santos-Dumont who flew self-made aircraft.

By 1921, Farman upgraded the A6 into the A6B which had improvements such as power-assited brakes on all four wheels. This was upgraded again to meet the demands of large bodies and the more powerful 7.1-litre NF model was launched in 1927.

Bonhams sale of Chassis no. 428.

At their Automobiles d'Exception on 9 Feb 2008 at the Retromobile Salon our feature metallic silver A6B Super Sport Torpedo failed to meet its reserve with an estimate of €500,000 to 600,000. Below are some excerpts of the auction sale:

“confirmed by his great-nephew, automotive historian Manvendra Singh, this particular Farman Super Sport originally belonged to Lieutenant-Colonel HH Maharaja Sir Daulat Singh, the hereditary ruler of the Indian princely state of Idar, and is well remembered by members of his family. It is understood that the Maharaja used his Farman for tiger hunting as well as touring, and later presented the car to his brother’s father-in-law HH Maharaja Sir Bhom Pal, the ruler of the princely state of Karauli, in neighbouring Rajasthan.

The car was discovered, “somewhat derelict but intact”, in the garages of the Karauli Palace in 1967 by Rolls-Royce authority John Fasal during one of his many trips to India at the period. Its odometer recorded a mere 10,802 miles. Fasal was able to acquire the car along with a pair of 20-hp Rolls-Royces, though plans to ship the cars to Europe from Bombay took several years to materialise.

Soon after its return to Europe, the Farman was acquired by that noted connoisseur Wolfgang Gawor, who undertook an extensive restoration […] It has since been shown at the Meadowbrook and Amelia Island concours d’elegance.”

Story by Richard Owen and Bonhams 1793 Ltd.,