How about this for a cute little Gallic rarity?! This is a 1961 Renault Dauphine, finished in Black with wonderful Grey and Red Interior! She was ordered new with the Ferlec Semi Automatic Gearbox, which means you change gear normally but there is no clutch pedal! She has an amazing history from new and has covered a possibly genuine 30k Kms from new! A perfect little weekend runabout!

Introduced in 1957, the Renault Dauphine was the French manufacturer’s economy saloon – the equivalent, if you like, to a Ford Anglia or Morris Minor, offering comfortable, spacious transportation to the masses, but with a splash of French flair and quirkiness thrown in. First up, it was rear-engined – something that made it quite a strong competition car thanks to its tail-happy handling. Then there was the oddball styling – rounded and different, a twist from the three-box norm of the era. Those facets make it a fascinating car today, and this one is even more curious than most.  Our car was sold new by the Spanish importer to Malaga and spent most of its life there until she was found and Imported to the UK in the Seventies, it’s a genuine LHD example with a tiny mileage. But what makes it more interesting is its ‘Ferlec’ three-speed clutchless transmission. You drive it like a manual, but there’s no clutch pedal. In other words, it’s simplicity itself, and a fascinating Sixties oddball that’s bound to be a talking point at shows. Presented in a lovely original condition and largely unrestored, it’s something refreshingly different and massively good fun – one that deserves to be seen and used rather than kept in a museum.

The car has mostly original condition with local paintwork over the years, Original Malagan Documentation and MOT included. Tax and MOT exempt, UK V5C. The car has a Substantial history going back to the Sixties with a large amount of receipts for parts. The car comes with loads of original manuals including the Ferlec transmission repair manual, Olyslager service manual, Transmission diagram. She drives easily and is ready for the summer!

Not only is this a genuine low-mileage classic in wonderful condition, but it’s also something completely different. If you want a fun-to-drive Sixties classic in great order, but with the added talking point of being magnificently, wonderfully weird, then here it is. But don’t think weird means hard work – far from it. This car is a delight to drive, it works nicely and once you get the hang of the Ferlec transmission you wonder why more cars aren’t engineered like it today, let alone 60 years ago...