1952 Avions Voisin C31 Biscooter

Gabriel Voisin surveyed the recovering automotive market of postwar Europe and designed a small, two-passenger vehicle that could be operated without a driver’s license. With the chassis and bodywork made of lightweight aluminum, the Biscooter was a low-cost, low-maintenance vehicle, and its minimalist design reflected Voisin’s knowledge of aircraft construction methods. A four-passenger prototype was shown at the 1950 French Cycle and Motorcycle Show in Paris.

Despite the great interest and positive reception at the event, the successors of Gnome et Rhône/ SNECMA, the new owners of the Voisin factory, did not recognize Voisin’s engineering expertise and reputation and did not allow production to proceed on the new vehicle. Voisin soon licensed his original two-passenger design to Autonacional S.A. in Barcelona. The Spanish firm built and sold over 12,000 units using the Hispano Villiers 197 cc engine. The Voisin Biscooter offered here was the tenth in a series of 15 prototype models. In the 1980s, it was owned by the renowned art dealer Adrien Maeght in Mougins, France, and in subsequent ownership, the Biscooter received a mechanical restoration at the capable hands of Michel Magnin. In 2011, it joined the Mullin Collection in California, and was showcased in the Mullin Automotive Museum’s 2012 exhibit, La Vision de Voisin.