Panhard PL17 in need of some TLC

Kim made contact, wondering whether it was an eight or 12-cylinder model, but soon learnt it was everything but a prestigious US luxury car. “It's not a Packard,” he was told. “It's a Panhard.” But the rarity of the brand made the Yarloop wine farmer and car enthusiast buy it, anyway.

“It was buried in the back of a shed, under a tonne of rubbish,” he said. “It was in a sorry state, but it was straight, complete, and even had a pair of exceptionally detailed books for use by the agent's servicing department. I thought it would be a great resto project. The radical French car could be the only one still surviving in Australia, where only 13 of them are believed to have arrived in 1959.

Powered by an 845cc air-cooled twin-cylinder four-stroke motor, the steel-panelled Panhard PL17 had a very aerodynamic body and, despite its small engine, was capable of carrying six adults in comfort. It was quick too, with a top speed of about 80mph (130km/h) while returning 6.0litres/km.

Panhards filled the podium at the 1961 Monte Carlo Rally and many were raced in various parts of the world. Special racing versions made by Deutsch-Bonnet regularly won their class at Le Mans. The Panhard PL17 was made from 1959 to 1965, with 130,000 produced.

Its name was derived from “PL” for Panhard et Levassor (the original name of the company), with the “17” coming from the sum of 5+6+6, being 5 CV (fiscal horses, in the French power rating system) plus 6 for its seating capacity, plus 6 for its economy 6 litres/100km.

The front wheels were driven through a four-speed gearbox with column shift, synchro on the upper three gears and suspension was by two transverse leaf springs in front and a trio of torsion bars on either side at the back. The engine was a model of advanced engineering: High-domed light alloy pistons were housed in cast-iron liners and the conrods had roller-bearing big-ends on a built-up crankshaft, beneath which was a single cam operating the overhead valves by pushrods and roller-ended tappets.

The valve gear was also most unusual in having mini torsion bars, rather than springs, and valve clearance was by a spherical bearing that could be moved along a threaded pillar. Citroen took over Panhard in 1965 and stopped producing the PL17. Kim had planned to rebuild the car, but he's had it seven years and has not had time to put a spanner on it. The car was last registered in Mt Barker in 1977. “It's a bit of motoring history,” he said. “But it needs someone who has the time and interest to restore it.”