Frenchman in Montana: 1955 Panhard Dyna Z

1955 Panhard Dyna Z Rear

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UPDATE 1/31/12 – Sold for the BIN price of $9,500.

If the Citroen wasn’t strange enough for you, may we present this 1955 Panhard Dyna Z. Still French, but even more rare, this Panhard was also a cutting edge machine. If this really is a 1955 then someone will want to snatch it up right away because production started in 1954 and the first cars featured aluminum bodies before switching to steel. This car somehow ended up in Dillion, Montana and is listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding starts at $6,000 with a reserve and a BIN price of $9,500.

1955 Panhard Dyna Z Interior

This car has undergone a restoration at some point in its life, but the seller doesn’t give many clues to its current condition. The listing could probably use more specifics considering the amount of money involved. The car has obviously been resprayed and reupholstered, but beyond that we are not sure what work has already been done. It looks like it is going to need some sorting though.

1955 Panhard Dyna Z Engine

Two cylinders was all this air-cooled Panhard needed to move this lightweight sedan down the road. The little bit of power that was produced went straight to the front wheels. Seems like a configuration which only Saab 96 enthusiasts could appreciate. At least there is plenty of room under the hood to make repairs.

1955 Panhard Dyna Z Hood

The seller didn’t even get a good photo of this car’s best angle. What is not to like about that face? Not many of these cars were imported to the United States. We have only run across one other listed for sale and it was a later model in worse shape. This car is a rare find and is going to take a rare sort of buyer to find a new home. We now know that Lewis and Clark were not the only Frenchmen to make it to Montana…

Auctions Ending Soon

Comments

  1. Craig Bolton

    I’m aware that the Panhard is French, but I’m pretty sure Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were born in Virginia.

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  2. Russ

    Lewis and Clark were both born in VA. Craig is spot on. You must have been reading car magazines during American History class. HA!

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  3. Matt

    Already sold ? No wonder, it looks complete and straight.

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  4. Russell

    Who Framed Roger Rabbit!!

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  5. Barn Finds

    Haha, that is probably true about reading car magazines during history. Good one.

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  6. Barn Finds

    The eBay link was broken, but is all fixed now.

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  7. Craig Bolton

    Oh, I was probably reading a Henry Gregor Felson book- ‘Hot Rod” or the like in history class as well. Not sure where I picked up the L&C trivia- probably surfing the History Channel waiting for something other than NASCAR to come on Speed….

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  8. Craig Bolton

    I love the Panhard boxer twins- one of the neatest roller cranks going- the idler rollers keep the bearing rollers from scooting around during warm-up.

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  9. Chris K

    looks like a bumper car-I like the back fender detail

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  10. J. Pickett

    Pretty intTred. Imaginative engineering. Also remnant of one of the original auto makers from the 19th century. Think “panhard rod”.

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  11. TPI

    I really like odd looking cars. My Street Rod Model T C-Cab is odd looking and our old DeSoto is odd and some even call our T-Birds odd.

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  12. Barn Finds

    So, Sacagawea was married to a French-Canadian, so maybe that is the French connection I was thinking of? You can tell your kids that they can read all the car magazines they want in school… That is what Wikipedia is for anyways, right?

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  13. gefa42

    Hello, Yes this Dyna Panhard (Type Z1 vintage 1955) has an aluminum body, this model is becoming very rare in France … Regards,

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  14. Jim Hollis

    What an unusual looking car. Truly “Fish-faced!”

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  15. gefa42

    Hello, This is correct, the form of this dynamic was especially designed for an optimal aerodynamic penetration, (technically a CX, penetration coefficient 0.236 years the air) the engine is 850 cc, fed with a dual carburetor body (Solex 30 AAP) where (Zenith NDIX 32) Power 5 hp, 42 hp SAE Power 4500 t / m, 6 seats, Dyna This is very economical for the time is: 5.5 L/100 km fuel .. .. Regards,

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  16. Jim Hollis

    @ gefa42: Wow, heavy stuff. I figured it had something to do with aerodynamics. I’m not the car buff you appear to be, but I do have an interest in unusual automobiles. Thanks for the input! Jim

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  17. drac
  18. DolphinMember

    Suicide doors; underpowered 2-cylinder air cooled; 8 in the country = limited market for parts; French. No matter how oddball, different sells these days.

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  19. gefa42

    @ Jim, Technically this mechanism requires a minimum of maintenance, for a high performance engine one must respect the advice of the manufacturer, meet the quality and viscosity of oil, respect the TI candles, respect the settings of the engine (…) Not

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  20. Jim Hollis

    Interesting comments all around. I really like the Panhard; very unique indeed. I don’t collect, sell or trade vintage or rare cars, but I hope to one day. I live in the States, but I’d love a 1966-1967 Pontiac Acadian. the first one I ever saw was in a traffic jam while heading to “Expo ’67” with Mom & Dad. The slightly different styling of the Canadian vehicle vs. the Nova really intrigued me.

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  21. gefa42

    Hello, exactly the panhard are unique, for this reason that I collect, restore, repair models out between 1947 and 1965, I love the Studebaker President Speedster from 1955, is a beautiful car.!here is the address of my blog: http://gefa42.auto-blog.fr/ and some videos on Youtube … gefa42000 Regards Gerard

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