I have many editions of Automobile Year, some in English and some in French, but I dare not look at them too often.

This is because they tend to be terribly addictive. Sit down with one for just a minute and that becomes an hour and leads you into looking at the next year and then the evening is gone, though very happily so. This addiction is caused by the fact Automobile Year has always been just that, a complete year in the life of the automobile… industry, racing, show cars, technical advancements… the lot. And it keeps the year in perspective. This makes it such a treat to get each new Automobile Year because we can look at the immediate past with a better perspective, not in the heat of battle, so to speak, but after things have settled down a bit.

It is a visual treat too, not just the excellent photography, but also the advertisements, which have covered such a wide spectrum. I enjoy looking at the old issues, with ads ranging from those lovely Heuer watches you could mount on your dashboard to DKWs to huge articulated buses.

Browsing through  past issues of Automobile Year also brings back memories of the two men who made it work in those early years, Ami Guichard – the little guy with the marvelous moustache and beard – and Yves Debraine – the husky blond one, a physical contrast to Ami. Both such amiable gentlemen.

It’s nice to see their work being continued with such quality.