De Dion-Bouton Type LA History

After the First World War De Dion-Bouton stagnated badly. The company attempted various models through the early 1920s, but the factory closed for much of 1927, a sign of severe financial distress. On reopening, two models were listed: the Type LA with a 1,982 cc overhead-valve four-cylinder engine with aluminium pistons — a technically forward-looking specification — and the larger Type LB.

The Type LA was De Dion-Bouton's attempt to re-enter the volume market with a modern, lightweight design. Overhead valves and aluminium pistons were genuine engineering merits, but the company no longer had the distribution network, brand momentum, or capital to compete effectively against Citroën, Peugeot, and Renault.

Rumoured takeovers by Peugeot and Mercedes never materialised, and passenger car production ended in 1932. The Type LA is the final chapter of one of the most consequential automobile manufacturers of the pioneer era — the company that had once powered 150 makes and taught the world what a petrol engine could do.