Hypcars or Hypercars?
From a tech perspective, a good number of these cars could genuinely be labelled supercars, or as some prefer to call them, “hypercars.” This classification would be justified even in terms of performance, as a Citroën SM with just a boosted engine has been known to exceed speeds of 325 km/h! In our context, however, we use the term “hypcars” to spotlight vehicles that feature suspension systems combining fluid and gas. At Hypcars©, we primarily celebrate hydropneumatic Citroëns while also showcasing exceptional British and German models produced in limited quantities, with even fewer surviving examples. Our ultimate goal is to broaden the project’s scope to include other vehicles with unconventional suspension systems, which are detailed in our Hypcar History section.
While these remarkable cars have played a pivotal role in shaping automotive history, the bold creativity of the teams behind them has not always led to commercial success. But isn’t taking risks part of what makes a game-changer truly exciting? Therefore, our initiative pays tribute to the brilliant minds behind hypcars, including (in alphabetical order) Flaminio Bertoni, André Lefèbvre, Paul Magès, Alex Moulton, and, albeit indirectly, aviation pioneer Gabriel Voisin. While many engineers, inventors, stylists, and designers contributed to the development of these amazing vehicles, they are often overshadowed in relevant sources. To highlight a few, we acknowledge André Barthélémy, John Blatchley, Henri Dargent, Marc Deschamps, André Estaque, Trevor Fiore, Friedrich Geiger, Jean Giret, Regis Gromik, Harry Grylls, Michel Harmand, Harris W. Mann, Jacques Né, Jean Nicolas, and Robert Opron, all of whom made crucial contributions. You can find more information about these and other talented designers on the dedicated websites of André Leroux and Simon.
It goes without saying that visionary founders, directors, and managers—like André Citroën, Pierre Bercot, Pierre-Jules Boulanger, Jacques Calvet, Jean Cadiou, Xavier Karcher, the Michelin brothers, Robert Peugeot, Robert Puiseux, Claude Satinet, F. Llewellyn Smith, and George Taylor were instrumental in nurturing and championing the bold ideas that led to the creation of hypcars. André Citroën, in particular, deserves to be remembered as a high-risk visionary trailblazer who not only introduced remarkable innovations in his cars (especially in the Traction Avant) but also reshaped the perception of the automobile among other manufacturers, specifically regarding front-wheel drive, independent suspension, rack and pinion steering, and unibody construction.