The Djet is a two-seater sports car launched in 1962. Initially developed and produced in 198 units by French sports car manufacturer René Bonnet, 1,495 were built by Matra Sports1 from 1964 to 1968. The Djet was the first road car in history to use the rear-engine mid-engine racing car structure. This design was subsequently adopted by the majority of very sporty cars, such as the De Tomaso Vallelunga (1964), the Lotus Europe (1965), the Lamborghini Miura (1966) or the Dino 246 GT offered by Ferrari in 1968. In 1964, Matra Sports took over René Bonnet, bankrupted by the commercial failure of the Djet, and went on to design and market versions 5 and 6. The Djet V's bodywork was modified with an enlarged rectangular front air intake, a larger luggage compartment thanks to a 40 cm longer rear overhang, enlarged rear wheel arches, a rear hatch opening from rear to front (inverted), vertical rear bumpers replaced by a horizontal bumper, and Simca 1300 / 1500 taillights instead of round truck lights. It is powered by a 5-stage Renault Sport Alpine Gordini engine, with two power outputs available: 1,108 cm3 with 70 hp for the Djet V, and 1,108 cm3 with 94 hp for the Djet V S. For the record.... in 1965, Matra presented a Matra-Bonnet Djet to the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin (1934-1968, the first man in human history to fly into space, on April 12, 1961. during his visit to France. It was a Matra-Bonnet Djet 5, production of which came to a halt the same year that Yuri died in an accident. T he Matra we're offering is complete and has already benefited from restoration work on the chassis, upholstery and paintwork. Work has also been carried out on the Alpine engine and Weber carburetors. The car is running, but needs an engine tune-up. Due to lack of time, the current owner is unable to continue the restoration and return the car to the road. He therefore wishes to part with the car and ensure that this fine project is completed by another Alpine enthusiast.