1932 Hotchkiss AM80

Description

1932 Hotchkiss AM80 Sports Saloon

Impressive three-litre sports saloon; well-known VSCC car; interesting history; nicely restored

In the early days of motoring, Hotchkiss sat firmly at the top end of the French motoring firmament, making top-quality cars of robust proportions and strong performance.

The AM80 was their flagship model in the early '30s, featuring a three-litre six-cylinder engine with seven main bearings and straight-forward over-head valves. Contemporary road tests boasted near 80mph with a cruising speed anywhere between 55 and 65mph.

First registered with the London number GX 7173 in May 1932, this AM80 was still in London in the 1950s. By the 1970s, it had found its way to Malasia although by then was in a sorry state. A three-part story relating to its discovery and resurrection is on file from the Malasia and Singapore Vintage Car Register Magazine and it was repatriated sometime in the 1980s.

The vendor acquired it in 2017 from a small ad in the VSCC Newsletter having fallen in love with the looks, quality and performance. Well known to the British Hotchkiss Society, it remains in nicely restored condition and carries its original Monaco four-door, four-seater factory coachwork. 

A handy trunk at the back includes an ingenious picnic table and an original French handbook is also on file.

It has not seen active service for several years and we have not attempted to start the car since arrival on-site, although we are told it was running well when put away pre-Covid.

For more information - contact matthew.parkin@brightwells.com