A Blizzard Busting Bombardier

Bonhams to auction an early B-7 snowmobile created by Joseph-Armand Bombardier after he lost his son in a blizzard for just under £30,000 reports Nikolay Kalinin

With a design reminiscent of a Citroën 2CV, but with wheels replaced by tracks and skis, a 1940s snowmobile made by Bombardier is headed to auction later this month in America. It represents an interesting piece of motoring history and though it may look amusing, it was actually tragically born out of loss.

The B-7 snowmobile was the personal project of Joseph-Armand Bombardier (1907 – 1964) – the man credited with having brought snowmobiles into the mainstream after he lost his 2-year old son to complications of an appendicitis, having been unable to get him to hospital due to blizzard conditions. Quebec born Bombardier developed the snowmobile as a vehicle that could “float over the snow,” and it brought him great fame and recognition within the motoring industry.

The Bombardier B-7 offered has seven seats and is powered by a Ford Flathead V8 engine that has approximately 90 bhp. This model is from 1940, three years after Bombardier had begun building snowmobiles, and a year after orders for his vehicles reached 100.

The example to be sold has been immaculately restored to the point that it looks just like it came out of the factory, with a perfectly functional engine, restored wood and refurbished seats. Of it, auctioneers Bonhams comment: “The vehicle is an exceptionally pleasing and fascinating static exhibit, and an example of a model which is perhaps unknown to most.”

The snowmobile – which until recently formed part of the collection of the late Glenn C. Gould Jr. – will be auctioned at Bonhams’ Amelia Island Auction in Florida on 20^th May 2021 with an estimate of £21,700 to £29,000 ($30,000 to $40,000, €25,000 to €33,300 or درهم110,200 to درهم146,900). This price seems relatively cheap in comparison to other lots in that auction – some of which are likely to be hammered down ultimately for millions of pounds.