1908 French Grand Prix
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1908 Grand Prix season | |||
| Date | July 7, 1908 | ||
| Official name | Grand Prix de l'Automobile Club de France | ||
| Location | Dieppe, France | ||
| Course | Public roads | ||
| Course length | 76.989 km (47.840 mi) | ||
| Distance | 10 laps, 769.889 km (478.400 mi) | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Otto Salzer | Mercedes | |
| Time | 36:31.0 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Mercedes | ||
| Second | Benz | ||
| Third |
| Benz | |
The 1908 French Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at Dieppe on 7 July 1908.
Formula Changes
The race was run under a new formula agreed in Ostend in 1907. There was no fuel consumption limit, but the cars had a minimum weight of 1100 kilograms, and a maximum cylinder bore of 155 millimetres.[1]
This formula differed from the regulations in place for the American Vanderbilt Cup series, which discouraged American manufacturers from entering the race.[2] Lewis Strang drove the single American entrant, the Thomas Flyer.[3]
The Race
Christian Lautenschlager won the race in his Mercedes finishing nearly nine minutes ahead of Victor Hémery's Benz. Lautenschlager's average speed for the race was 69.045 mph (111.117 km/h). Otto Salzer set fastest lap in his Mercedes, with an average speed of over 78 mph (126 km/h).[4][5] The race was notable for tragic reasons. Henri Cissac's car lost a tyre and rolled, killing Cissac and Jules Schaube, his riding mechanic. This was the first fatal accident in Grand Prix history.[6]
Classification
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Laps | Time/Retired |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 35 | Christian Lautenschlager |
Mercedes | 10 | 6:55:43.8 |
| 2 | 6 |  Victor Hémery |
Benz 150 hp | +8:40.2 | |
| 3 | 23 | René Hanriot |
Benz 150 hp | +9:29.2 | |
| 4 | 11 | Victor Rigal |
Clément-Bayard | +34:52.8 | |
| 5 | 2 | Willy Pöge |
Mercedes | +36:47.2 | |
| 6 | 27 | Carl Jörns |
Opel | +43.56.2 | |
| 7 | 39 | Fritz Erle |
Benz | +56:48.0 | |
| 8 | 37 |  Sergey Dimitriewich |
Renault | +1:07:39.0 | |
| 9 | 16 |  George Heath |
Panhard-Levassor | +1:09:03.0 | |
| 10 | 49 | .svg.png){kind=small} Perpère |
Germain | +1:12:34.4 | |
| 11 | 12 | .svg.png){kind=small} Alessandro Cagno |
Itala | +1:21:23.0 | |
| 12 | 28 | Fernand Gabriel |
Clément-Bayard | +1:25:11.2 | |
| 13 | 36 | Courtade | Motobloc | +1:26:10.0 | |
| 14 | 20 | Pierre Garcet |
Motobloc | +1:33:23.0 | |
| 15 | 21 | Gustave Caillois |
Renault | +1:33:23.4 | |
| 16 | 14 | Camille Jenatzy |
Mors | +1:38:11.8 | |
| 17 | 31 | Landon | Mors | +1:52:47.4 | |
| 18 | 18 |  JTC Moore-Brabazon |
Austin | +1:56:17.0 | |
| 19 | 1 | Dario Resta |
Austin | +2:00:17.4 | |
| 20 | 29 | Henri Fournier |
Itala | +2:00:47.4 | |
| 21 | 10 | Friedrich Opel |
Opel | +2:21:38.6 | |
| 22 | 17 | François Degrais |
Germain | +2:27:01.0 | |
| 23 | 32 | Henry Farman |
Panhard-Levassor | +2:38:07.0 | |
| Ret | 8 | Léon Théry |
Brasier | 9 | Wheel |
| Ret | 41 | Paul Bablot |
Brasier | 9 | Magneto |
| Ret | 9 | Emile Stricker |
Porthos | 9 | |
| Ret | 43 | Michel | Opel | 9 | Radiator |
| Ret | 48 | Henri Cissac |
Panhard-Levassor | 8 | Fatal crash |
| Ret | 13 | Pryce Harrison | Weigel | 5 | Crash |
| Ret | 44 | Lucien Hautvast |
Clément-Bayard | 5 | Wheel |
| Ret | 34 | Warwick Wright |
Austin | 4 | Engine |
| Ret | 33 | François Marie Roch-Brault | Germain | 4 | |
| Ret | 15 | Lewis Strang |
Thomas | 4 | Clutch |
| Ret | 40 | Louis Wagner |
Fiat | 3 | Gearbox |
| Ret | 24 | Felice Nazzaro |
Fiat | 3 | Engine |
| Ret | 3 | Pierron | Motobloc | 3 | Crash |
| Ret | 30 | Gregor Laxen | Weigel | 3 | Crash |
| Ret | 25 | Paul Baras |
Brasier | 3 | Engine |
| Ret | 38 | Ferdinando Minoia |
Lorraine-Dietrich | 3 | Magneto |
| Ret | 5 | Arthur Duray |
Lorraine-Dietrich | 2 | Clutch |
| Ret | 4 | .svg.png){kind=small} Ferenc Szisz |
Renault | 2 | Wheels |
| Ret | 19 | Otto Salzer | Mercedes | 2 | Wheel |
| Ret | 42 | Jules Simon | Porthos | 2 | Water pump |
| Ret | 7 | Vincenzo Lancia |
Fiat | 1 | Engine |
| Ret | 22 | Henri Rougier |
Lorraine-Dietrich | 1 | Magneto |
| Ret | 46 | Shannon | Weigel | 1 | Steering |
| Ret | 45 | Giovanni Piacenza |
Itala | 1 | Gearbox |
| Ret | 26 | J. Gaubert | Porthos | 0 | Water pump |
| Grand Prix Race | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous race: None |
1908 Grand Prix season Grandes Épreuves |
Next race: None |
| Previous race: 1907 French Grand Prix |
French Grand Prix | Next race: 1912 French Grand Prix |
References
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to 1908 French Grand Prix. |
- ↑ Etzrodt, Hans (2007-06-19). "Grand Prix Winners 1895-1949. History and Formulae". Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
- ↑ "Foreign Autoists Eager for Racing" (PDF). The New York Times. 1908-01-06. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
- ↑ "The American Car in Grand Prix Race" (PDF). The New York Times. 1908-05-03. Retrieved 2007-10-27.
- ↑ Higham, Peter (1995). The Guinness Guide to International Motor Racing. Guinness Publishing. pp. 194–195. ISBN 0-85112-642-1.
- ↑ "1908 Grands Prix". Retrieved 2007-10-29.
- ↑ "Motorsport Memorial - Henri Cissac". Retrieved 2014-01-29.