In 1882, Count Alberto De Dion started a partnership with mechanic Georges Bouton to build steam vehicles.
In 1889, the two partners started designing low-powered internal combustion engines, and in 1893 they patented a new system for cardan transmission, called the “De Dion rear axle”, which is still valid today. In 1900, De Dion-Bouton was the biggest car producer in the world. In 1910, the long series of models with V shaped eight-cylinder engines started, and they obtained a remarkable success.
After the First World War, however, the company was unable to maintain the same innovative level of its best years, and the market punished it. De Dion Bouton did not resist the 1929 economic crisis, and in 1933 it had to close down for good.
