De Dion-Bouton Type AD History
Catalog record
This is a brief catalog introduction with limited source documentation. A licensed, identity-checked lead photograph has not yet been added for this page. Detailed year, configuration and ownership coverage must be identified separately; this page is not a complete vehicle catalog.
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Launched for 1904, the Type AD was De Dion-Bouton's entry into four-cylinder motoring: a 2,545 cc engine producing 15 CV, available in touring body styles typical of Edwardian motoring. It was joined by the 24 CV Type AI, offering a range that covered buyers from modest runabouts to proper touring cars.
The Edwardian-era Type AX 15 HP (a related four-cylinder, c.1906–1908) is among the survivors most commonly seen today. One such car, bodied by Roussille & Fils of Bergerac, illustrates the custom coachwork that upper-tier De Dion-Boutons received. De Dion-Bouton also entered a 10 CV car in the punishing 1907 Peking-to-Paris rally, demonstrating confidence in the reliability of their four-cylinder touring cars.
By this era — 1904 to 1908 — De Dion-Bouton was one of France's most prominent manufacturers, but the Edwardian market was fragmenting as dozens of new rivals emerged with modern engineering. The Type AD family represents the high-water mark of De Dion-Bouton's touring-car programme before the landmark V8 era.
Body styles
- Touring car
- Phaeton
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