The intriguing material shown here is in the hands of a fanatic collector of pre 1905 motorcycles and the odd car of the same period. Anything really early is what he likes. Currently he is working on a Lemaitre-Benz project. Lemaitre? Yes, Lemaitre is known as coachbuilder in Alençon since 1840.
The Benz chassis had wooden wheels meant to take solid rubber tyres. According to old Benz catalogues wooden wheels were an option for the years around 1895/96. There are four hubcaps marked Lemaitre*Alençon. The photo is showing the 'debris' of a Benz chassis. Included with the engine parts is a very early 1888 patented sparkplug(see below) and one of later date but still quite early(1896). The Veteran Car Club seems to be aware of the project and a representative has seen the parts in person. We are now looking out for more period information about Lemaitre. Did he in fact build one or more cars or is the Lemaitre-Benz marriage coincidence? Interestingly Fons Alkemade pointed us at Mr. Albert Lemaître, who participated with a Peugeot type 7 in the 1894 Paris-Rouen. It is not known to us if this Lemaitre is related with the Alençon coachbuilder. (photos by owner) 
