Imagine yourself immersed in a thrilling adventure that began in 1905, when the brothers Edouard and Maurice Ballot decided to create their own company by manufacturing stationary engines for industry, then to conquer the seas by motorizing boats.

From 1910, their company, renamed 'Etablissements Ballot SA', broadened its horizons and began manufacturing automobile engines. With their high quality, many automobile brands turn to them for supplies: Delage, Corre-La-Licorne, Delaugère and Clayette, etc.

During the First World War, Ballot's great reputation was put to use. The company supplies aircraft, truck, generator and, of course, ship engines on behalf of the French army.

Once peace returned and army orders dried up, the Ballot brothers decided to extend their engine business to the manufacture of complete automobiles. And what better way to make yourself known than motor racing! They build their own Grand Prix cars powered by an 8-cylinder engine with hemispherical chambers, 4 valves per cylinder and two overhead camshafts of 4817 cm3, then when the regulations require it, of 3000 cm3. With 150 hp, the first versions came close to 200 km/h and proved to be particularly modern and efficient Grand Prix cars.

In 1920, at Indianapolis, the Ballot 3 liters finished 2nd, 5th and 7th, then 2nd and 3rd at the French Grand Prix in 1921 and finally won the Italian Grand Prix at Brescia with Jules Goux at the wheel while Jean Chassagne takes second place.

Building on their success, they finally unveiled their first automobile to the public in 1922, a 10/11CV type 2LT, based on their 2LS competition model. We're talking about one of the most aristocratic cars of the time! Refined, powerful and safe with its mechanical brakes on all four wheels, its braking assistance, the 4-speed gearbox, the overhead camshaft, all equipped with legendary Ballot reliability.

The second part of the 1920s was a real explosion of new products in terms of big cars, and Ballot was no exception to the rule. In 1928, they presented their jewel, the 2.6 liter 15hp, a powerful 8-cylinder in line. In 1930, the displacement increased to 3 liters, making this 17hp marvel, the RH type, a concentrate of technology!

But this model arrived at the wrong time, because the crash of 1929 deprived Ballot of a clientele capable of affording such vehicles. In financial difficulty, the company is forced to accept the takeover offer from its prestigious competitor Hispano-Suiza. The Ballot brand will then inexorably die out.

The Ballot brothers made history with their passion, their audacity and their mechanical genius. Their name and those of their vehicles still resonate today, recalling a time when limits were made to be pushed, ... and which we called the Roaring Twenties!