Henri Julien (motor sports) facts for kids

Henri Julien (born September 18, 1927 – died July 13, 2013) was a French racing car driver and a very important person in motor sports. He started and ran the Automobiles Gonfaronnaises Sportives (AGS) racing team. This team competed in major races like the European Formula Two Championship and Formula 1 during the 1970s and 1980s.

Biography

Henri Julien's Garage de l'Avenir (Garage of the Future) in Gonfaron (2001)

Henri Julien's father owned a petrol station and a car repair shop in a French village called Gonfaron. The shop was named "Garage de l'Avenir," which means "Garage of the Future." After finishing his training, Henri took over the business in 1947.

In 1946, Julien visited the Grand Prix race in Nice. This was one of the first big races after World War II. Seeing this race made him very interested in motor sports.

Racing Driver

In 1950, Henri Julien designed his first racing car. It was a "single-seater," meaning it had only one seat for the driver. He built it using parts from Simca cars. He drove this car himself in junior races for smaller engines.

He built a second car in 1952, which had a BMW engine. In 1957, he created his JH3 car, also known as the Julien-Panhard. This car had an 850 cc Panhard engine and was front-wheel drive. It also used other parts from Panhard production cars.

By the late 1950s, Julien focused on a new racing class called Formula Junior. He changed his cars to fit the rules of this class. However, he only raced in a few events in southern France himself.

In 1959, Julien raced his Julien-Panhard car in the Formula Junior Grand Prix of Monaco. He managed to qualify for the race. He finished in 19th place, several laps behind the winner, Michael May. He tried again in Monaco in 1960 with an improved car, the JH4. But for some reason, he did not start the race that year.

After 1959, Julien stopped building his own race cars. In the 1960s, he sometimes drove cars made by other companies. He raced in smaller categories, including Formula 3.

In 1964, he entered a Lotus 22 car with a Ford engine in a Formula 3 race. He raced at Pau but had to stop after 13 laps because of brake problems. He also tried to race in the Formula 3 Grand Prix of Monaco but did not qualify.

Julien raced again in Formula 3 in 1965. He entered an Alpine 270 car with a Renault engine at Pau. However, he did not qualify for this race either. Soon after, at 38 years old, he stopped competing in races. But he continued to help train young French drivers in Formula 3.

Motorsports Team Owner

Henri Julien started his own company called Automobiles Gonfaronnaises Sportives (AGS). This name means "Sportscars from Gonfaron." The company was located in his "Garage de l'Avenir." He worked with his mechanic, Christian Vanderpleyn, who had trained with him. Together, they began building their own racing cars.

AGS first built cars for smaller racing classes. These included Formule France, Formula Renault, and Formula 3. But from 1978, AGS started competing in Formula 2. Then, from 1986 to 1991, they even raced in the top class, Formula 1.

AGS always had its own racing team. They raced under the AGS name in all the series. Henri Julien was the team owner and manager until 1989. Under his leadership, the AGS team won three races in Formula 2 over seven years. Richard Dallest won twice in 1980. Philippe Streiff won in 1984, becoming the winner of the very last Formula 2 race ever held.

In 1986, Julien decided to enter Formula 1. The French Formula 1 team Renault F1 had stopped racing in 1985. They sold many of their car parts and equipment to Julien. Henri Julien and Christian Vanderpleyn used these parts to build their first Formula 1 car, the AGS JH21C. This car had a 1.5-litre turbocharged engine. An Italian company called Jolly Club helped with money.

The AGS team first appeared at the 1986 Italian Grand Prix. Their only driver was Ivan Capelli. AGS was the smallest Formula 1 team in the 1980s. They had only 6 employees, including the driver! Other big teams had more than 100 employees.

At the race in Monza, the team managed to qualify. They also qualified in Portugal a few weeks later. But they did not finish either race. The next year, AGS earned its first championship point. This happened when Roberto Moreno finished sixth in Australia. Two years later, Gabriele Tarquini also finished sixth in Mexico. These were the only points AGS ever scored in Formula 1.

Because of money problems, Julien sold his team in late 1988. A French businessman named Cyril de Rouvre bought it. He ran the team for two more years. AGS finally closed down in September 1991.

People described Julien's way of managing as kind-hearted. He once said, "It's good to compete with others, as long as you don't forget to eat and drink well afterwards."

After AGS closed, the company was reorganized. It reopened in 1991 as a service provider. This new company lets people pay to drive a real Formula 1 racing car. They have their own race track in Le Luc. Henri Julien was the Honorary President of this new company.

In the 1990s, Julien worked with another person named Bernard Boyer. They developed a 500 cc racing car. In 1997, this car set a new speed record at the Circuit Automobile Mortefontaine. It reached an average speed of 222.557 km/h. This broke a 44-year-old record for cars of that size!

Henri Julien lived in the apartment above his "Garage de l'Avenir" until he became ill. He passed away in a hospital in Hyères.

Racing Cars

The cars listed below were designed and built by Henri Julien's team. This included Christian Vanderpleyn. The cars were named after the team owner, using "JH" for Julien Henri.