Automobiles FD: the story of a forgotten Flemish car-maker

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If we ask you to name a Flemish car manufacturer, you might suggest Minerva immediately, but what else was there? FN and Pipe may have been Belgian, but they were not made in Flanders. Let us introduce you, if you haven't encountered it before, to Automobiles FD.


Around 1922 Florent Depuydt, the mechanic and manufacturer of Wonder and Hirondelles bicycles, started building cars at Brugsesteenweg 1-5 in Roeselare. They were assembled cars, built using parts purchased from suppliers. The engines used were of the Ruby brand, C.I.M.E. or Altos. The FD program was shown at the 1923 Brussels Salon and consisted of three four-cylinder models, a 7hp (1100cc), 9hp (1500cc) and 11hp (two-litre).

All used overhead-valve engines, but the 9hp's was overhead-cam. The 7hp was three-speed and rear-wheel brakes only, while the larger cars were both four-speeds and had Perrot front brakes. Their respective top speeds were said to be 40mph, 56mph and 68mph.

Depuydt's activity was not just confined to Roeselare. He also started building FDs in Paris. FDs have been compared to Génestin and Delfosse, also minor car-makers from northern France. Despite some competitive driving to its credit - Desprez drove a 9hp minus front brakes in the Tour de France in April 1924 and completed the 2330-mile drive without a single penalty point, thus earning a gold medal - FD production seems to have come to an end in 1925.

That's all very well for an introduction, but now you know as much as we do. Our source for this information was Mathieu Depuydt, via mathieudepuydt.com, but we'd like to know more.

Maybe you've got something on Automobiles FD filed away at the back of your mind? Perhaps there's a survivor lurking under a cover of dust somewhere? Please tell us whatever you can.

Words: Zack Stiling; pictures: Senta Depuydt

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