DB HBR4
The DB HBR4 was a sports car that was developed by Deutsch & Bonnet in 1956 and was used in sports car races until 1961.
Development history
In 1932, the French racing driver and later designer Charles Deutsch inherited an automobile workshop from his father and sold it to his compatriot René Bonnet that same year . In 1938 they founded the company Automobiles DB for the production of automobiles in Champigny-sur-Marne . The brand names were DB and Deutsch & Bonnet . After the end of the Second World War , the production of road cars began and the development of racing cars that had begun before the war continued.
After the DB HBR , the DB HBR5 was the company's second major development and the HBR4 was an offshoot of this model. The difference lay in the engine: while the HBR5 even had engines with 1-liter displacement, the HBR4 used 0.75-liter, 2-cylinder boxer engines from Panhard . In contrast to the more powerful model, the HBR4 was often equipped with the lighter Spyder body.
Racing history
The HBR4 made its racing debut at the 12-hour race in Reims in 1956 with a ninth place in the class for sports cars up to 1.5-liter displacement. Robert Mougin and Louis Cornet were behind the wheel .
In 1959 , works cars were used in the sports car world championship . There were class wins at the 1000 km race at the Nürburgring and the 24-hour race at Le Mans . In Le Mans, René Cotton and Louis Cornet won the 25th Biennial Cup and, in addition to their racing class, also won the Index of Performance, while Paul Armagnac and Bernard Consten remained successful in the Index of Thermal Efficiency. There were also class wins in Le Mans in 1960 ; this time Gérard Laureau was Armagnac's partner. The last race was at the 1000 km race in Paris in 1960 , where the three HBR4 started were classified in positions 20, 21 and 23.