The Return of a Legend
- Jürgen Clauss
- May 10
- 8 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
My Journey to the Alpine A210, Chassis No. 1725
There are dreams that stay with us for a lifetime.
They mature quietly in the background, nourished by memories, encounters and passion.
The acquisition of perhaps the most significant vehicle in Alpine’s history – the A210 with chassis number #1725.
The most extraordinary A210 among the mere 7 ever built – the former Le Mans Alpine of Gérard Gombert –
a car that wrote motorsport history and to which I have a personal connection.
REVIEW
A Pilgrimage of Rust and Glory – The Forgotten World of Gérard Gombert
Two Encounters with Gérard Gombert
In the quiet hills on the edge of town, where fox and hare bid each other goodnight, lived Gérard Gombert –
an eccentric old hermit. For decades, he had withdrawn from the world, surrounded by rusty treasures and dented relics of automotive history. His scrapyard was an enchanted place, wrapped in legend and mystery.
My first encounter with Gérard Gombert dates back to 2001. Back then, we visited him at his legendary scrapyard in Fayence, right in the heart of Provence.
A place seemingly frozen in time, filled with rusting gems, caught in a Sleeping Beauty-like slumber.
Old Renaults, Peugeots, and Mercedes – all covered in the dust of the years, yet brimming with stories.
We helped him tow his broken-down Mercedes “Strich 8” – an absurd, almost cinematic scene that would become
the beginning of a very special connection.
The Magic of Decay
I saw Gérard a second time in the summer of 2010. There were no signs pointing the way, no entries on maps or websites. Those who found the place had truly earned it. And those who entered fell silent. The wind whispered through shattered windows, birds nested in engine blocks – and Gérard, usually barely dressed, greeted us with a friendly wave at the gate of his domain as we arrived.
Over a glass of rosé amidst the dusty rarities, we listened to his stories – endless, fantastic, bizarre, and full of passion. Gérard rarely spoke much, but when he did, every word was like a little poem made of gasoline, memory, and mechanical philosophy. His knowledge was vast, his collection inexhaustible, his gaze dreamy and rooted in the past. Gérard spoke for hours about his life, about cars, motorcycles, races, dreams. The hours passed like minutes.
In the end, we said goodbye warmly. We left Fayence not only with lasting impressions – but as friends.
Gérard Gombert`s legacy
In April 2016, Gérard passed away – a loss that left a deep mark in the community.
It felt like a chapter of motorsport history had closed forever.
At the auction of his estate, I was determined to bid for the A210.
I was there – ready to go all in – but the price skyrocketed beyond reach and another enthusiast won the day.
Crowned Awakening
In the darkness of the abandoned barn—without doors, without windows—she lay hidden.
Alpine A210 chassis no. 1725. A torso of decaying stone and rough-hewn wood surrounded her, as if she were resting in a silent prison. Layers of dust had settled over years in every groove and notch, as though preserving the whisper of her story. Victories, breakdowns, the bitter scent of gasoline in the air at Le Mans.
I stepped closer. In the faint, dim light, I recognized something unbelievable. The genuine laurel wreath of the class winner—yellowed yet still majestic—still lay upon her roof.
The wreath was a silent testament to a class victory that no one would ever celebrate again—and yet it was here, as if it had grown into the car itself, determined that the memory of that triumph would never fade.
In that moment, I held my breath. Dust danced in the beam of light, as though escorting the car in one last victorious procession. I felt my heart pounding in time with the vision unfolding before me: the racetrack, the roar of engines,
the cheers of the crowd at the Circuit de la Sarthe—and above it all hovered the laurel wreath.
The crowning touch of the scene, a symbol of eternal remembrance that even decades of oblivion could not break.
There she stood now—freed from her stony prison, ignited by the first ray of sunlight.
Liberation means Farewell
A dull thud echoes through the valley of Fayence. A hole—rough, almost primal has been smashed into the old stone wall. And through this rupture, like a crack in time itself, light penetrates the crypt for the first time in decades.
Dust swirls, sunbeams reach in, as if to make sure it’s real.
There she stands. Alpine A210, chassis no. 1725. Imprisoned, forgotten, buried under rubble and silence for over 40 years. And yet, intact, proud, aged with dignity—like an Egyptian mummy in her stone sarcophagus. Her bodywork bears the marks of time, not as flaws, but as testimony to a life once lived on the racetrack—at Le Mans, 1969.
Slowly, reverently, the enthusiasts approach. No sudden movements, no noise—just the soft creak of a jack, the scrape of tires on gravel, the murmurs of voices still in disbelief. The tires, flat and weary, still carry her weight. The wheels turn—freely. The brakes are not seized. It’s as if she had only been asleep all these years.
Then she rolls out, into the light, into freedom. The old country road, just meters from Gérard Gombert’s scrapyard, becomes her stage. Onlookers stop, pull out their phones, speak in hushed excitement.
A child asks his father what kind of car that is. “A legend,” he replies. And so she is.
By the roadside, the transport truck waits. Its metal frame gleams in the sun, ready to carry her into a new chapter. One last glance back at the broken wall, at the scrapyard now silent again. The place that once swallowed her now lets her go. A moment full of reverence, gratitude—and a touch of sorrow. The Alpine leaves her realm of silence and returns to the world. Not restored, not reborn—but authentic, alive and ready to write a new story.
Photos: „Phares Jaunes et Damiers“
Second Life
RM Sothebys Auction - Le Mans Classic 2023
The Dream That Almost Became Reality
On June 9, 2023, the auction house RM Sotheby’s wrote a very special chapter in motorsport history. As part of the Le Mans Centenary Auction, a legend went up for sale—the 1967 Alpine A210.
Not just any car. This was a piece of racing heritage. Unrestored, clad in patina, frozen in time—entombed for over 40 years in a time capsule on Gérard Gombert’s scrapyard.
A machine born for efficiency and elegance, engineered to extract every last drop of fuel. Not for the brute force of the fastest laps, but for a clever interplay of physics, aerodynamics and weight. The Alpine was Le Mans’s quiet hero—designed to dominate the Index of „Thermal Efficiency“. And she was breathtakingly beautiful.
Bidding War – The Fierce Duel for the Alpine A210
I knew her before she even hit the block. I had once seen her live—through a crack in the masonry at Gérard Gombert’s scrapyard. Then again, in 2016 at the Fayence auction, where she was freed from her sarcophagus and saw the light of day once more.
Countless times I had studied her on photos, in videos and old archival footage. Those lines, that color, that aura.
I had dreamed of owning her and now she was just one click away.
My heart raced as the bidding war began. I had set my limit, crunched the numbers, made my plan and nurtured my hope. With trembling fingers I placed my first bid. The numbers climbed, my pulse soared—for a fleeting moment I was ahead. But then,a new bid, higher and another. I hesitated, I battled with myself. A bit higher? But there it was—my limit. I couldn’t go on. The number on the screen froze.
Unsold – Reserve Not Met!
I knew what it meant. The reserve price hadn’t been reached. She remained unsold. No new owner, no new beginning. She would roll back into a dark hall, vanish again—at least for a while.
The A210 at auction - watch the video here:
1967 Alpine A210#1725
Only a few Le Mans veterans boast as impressive a track record as this Alpine A210. She competed in the grueling race three times between 1967 and 1969, achieving ninth place overall and first in the under 1.3-liter class on her debut attempt. In 1968, rally aces Nicolas and Andruet managed 14th place overall, first in the under 1150 cm³ class, and claimed victory in the Index of Performance. Its final outing at Le Mans was less successful—she retired after just two hours due to a blown cylinder head gasket.
This already rare car—only seven A210s were built—also raced in the 12 Hours of Reims, the 500 km of Nürburgring, and the 9 Hours of Kyalami.
After her active career, she ended up in the hands of mechanic, motorcycle racer and collector Gerard “La Gombe” Gombert, who bought her in 1971 and kept her (unrestored) until his death 40 years later. Shortly thereafter, she was sold for €710,000 at the Etude Osenat auction house. She was then mechanically overhauled, with her wonderful
Le Mans patina preserved.
Source: Classic Driver
Photos: Remi Dargegen
OUTLOOK
December 2024 – The Turning Point
Then suddenly, in December 2024, the unexpected happened – the A210 resurfaced, this time for sale at Ascott Collection in France. I didn’t hesitate for a second – I wanted to try my luck once more. I submitted an offer.
What followed were three nerve-wracking days full of phone calls, negotiations, hope and anxiety.
Other interested parties were in the game and the A210 was actually set to be exhibited at Retromobile in Paris in February 2025.
I knew that once it appeared in Paris, it would be lost to me. I had to go all in now!
The Moment of Truth
The decisive moment came when the owner saw my website and my work around the Alpine A110.
He recognized the seriousness of my passion, the depth of my connection to the Alpine brand.
He must have sensed that this car would not disappear into a collection with me, but would embark on a new chapter.
A chapter defined by appreciation, technical expertise and genuine Alpine passion.
He saw that I wasn’t a speculator, not a dealer, but a lover and caretaker, an enthusiast – a part of this story.
Then the final call came from Xavier Micheron, the head of Ascott Collection, who played a key role in ensuring this special Alpine A210 would find its way into my hands:
“The car is yours”!
A Legend comes Home
I will never forget that moment – my heart pounded like the start of an endurance race.
Two decades of longing, setbacks, hope – all found their meaning in that one instant.
The A210 Chassi No.#1725 is coming home – into my collection, into an environment
where she is not only admired, but respected and understood.
She carries the DNA of Le Mans and their former pilots, the breath of Gérard, the blood and sweat of countless mechanics, engineers, drivers. She is now part of my story – a story that will continue to be written.
With every oil change, every drive, every second I start its engine.
She is a witness of time, a soul on wheels, a legend as beautiful as the Mona Lisa.
Yes indeed, truly, the Blue Mauritius of all Alpines.
Art on Wheels – finally Home
And then she was there, sitting on the trailer. Wrapped in the crisp morning air as I picked her up in France.
A monument of motorsport history, loaded onto my humble trailer. It was an almost surreal sight.
The return journey – a long drive across half of France, one pit stop only, no stop over, no risk, straight home as fast as possible. Kilometer after kilometer, the landscape passed me by, but my eyes kept drifting to the rearview mirror.
There she lay – calm, powerful, majestic. A legend coming home.
It felt as if a circle had finally closed. As if history itself had been waiting for this very moment. Everything has its time.
I look at her and think of Le Mans, of Gérard, her former pilots, of all the mechanics, drivers, dreams, nights filled with the smell of oil and gasoline, the roaring noise..., the racing heart. And now—she's part of my life, part of my story.
She has arrived. And so have I.
