Manufactured in Belgium 1923-1934
La Mondiale motorcycles were constructed using JAP, Sturmey Archer, Villiers and Blackburne engines, along with Chaise and those of their own manufacture.
The brothers Georges and Eugène Morel began business in Amsterdam around 1910 producing automobile chassis for the Dutch Spyker concern, with whom they worked closely during the war building aircraft.
After the war they moved to Brussels and established a firm with a business partner, de Nève.
Their first motorcycle appeared at the Brussels Show of 1923, and was very unusual. A pressed-metal frame housed an inverted 308cc two-stroke single which had five speeds achieved using a clutch-like device rather than a gearbox. The De Luxe lady's model had a chair rather than a saddle and looked rather like a scooter. Later models replaced the chair with a more conventional solution, but it remained featured on their logo.
The firm changed hands in 1925. The new owners, Fondu, had considerable experience in automobile construction and continued development of La Mondiale at their factory in Vilvoorde. At this point the catalogue listed the original Luxe 308cc two-stroke along with Sport and Tourisme models. The Sport was available with Blackburne or JAP 350cc side valve engines. The Tourisme model had a 350cc Villiers two-stroke engine. All had pressed-metal forks.
These were joined in 1927 by 500cc models, and the following year a Villiers 350 twin was revealed along with the quite fabulous 350 & 500cc OHC Chaise. This proved very reliable but suffered from overweight, and was soon replaced by an OHV Chaise, and then with an OHV JAP.
The company structure changed again in 1928 when it merged with a firm belonging to Tony Blavier and became "Sa de Constructions Mécaniques Mondiale"
With economic conditions worsening, La Mondiale offered a cheaper alternative for 1932, a twin-port 150cc Villiers. All of the other road-going models in that year's catalogue were fitted with Sturmey-Archer engines of 350, 500 and 600cc.
Struggling to survive, they released their last new model in 1933, a low-priced 350cc two-stroke. Manufacture ceased in 1934.[1]
Competition
By the late 1920s the marque was doing well on the racetracks. It gained laurels at Woluwe in the 600, 350 and 250cc classes and also at Francorchamps in the 350 with riders like Jules Fondu, Schouppe and Rauwers in the saddle.
Victory was gained at the 1931 Wavre hill-climb in the 250cc class with Notet riding, beating Rene Milhoux with an average of over 101km/h, who until then held the record on a Ready.
The Mondiale firm (mondiale.be) is still doing what its founders did over a century back with lathes and milling machines.
Le Salon Belge
La Mondiale. — Avec chassis en töle emboutie d'un bel ensemble assurant protection des organes de la machine et du motocycliste. Quatre types : luxe (300 cmc., deux temps) ; grand sport 350 cmc., culbuteurs Jap ou Blackburne ; sport deux temps 350 cmc. ; sport quatre temps 350 cmc., Jap ou Blackburne, soupapes latérales. Moto séduisante et d'un ensemble offrant une belle rigidité.
La Mondiale. - With sheet metal frame stamped with a beautiful assembly ensuring protection of machine components and of the motorcyclist. Four types: Luxury (300cc two-stroke) ; Grand Sport 350cc., overhead valve Jap or Blackburne; two-stroke Sport 350cc ; four-stroke Sport 350cc, Jap or Blackburne side-valve. Attractive motorcycle and an ensemble offering excellent rigidity.
Le Salon Belge, Moto Revue December 24th 1927
Notes. 1. End of production given as 1935 by mondial.be. This may well be an error, as is the reference to a postage stamp on the same page. See History of Mondiale
The marque is unrelated to Mondial
Sources: François-Marie Dumas, oldtimermuseum-be, bevemo.nl, nl.wikipedia.org.
Sat Sep 17 2016
zyggy28 at volny.cz
Daniel
La Mondiale Jap 500
Hallo, i have for sale motorcycle La Mondial with engine JAP 500 OHV, year of product (1929). If you are interested, or if you know somebody who wants buy this motorcycle mark. Please let me know.
Thanks, regards to Belgium,
Daniel (Czech Republic)
Ostrava (450 km from Prague)
English
Thu Oct 25 2007
johan.schaeverbeke at versateladsl.be
la mondiale motorcycles
2 stroke 350cc in our museum
Hallo for your information: we have a la mondiale 350cc 2stroke their
own engine in our museum. La mondiale was from Vilvoorde (close to Brussels)
and We had a visit from the grandchildren, and got some beautifull pictures
of the family and the factory, I have also a book about this company that
made form long time machines (leith)
Belgium
.........
Hallo here a foto of the red La Mondiale in the museum: this one of
from 1931 two stroke 350cc and their own engine, however they used also: JAP, Sturmey Archer, Villiers,
Blackburne
and French Chaise.
The company was involved in making machinery, and only 10 years in motorcycle
business. There factory was in Vilvoorde (Flemish part of Belgium, close
to Brussels).
I had the grand childeren on visit in the museum with lots of copies
of the company, family but he had no motorcycle at that moment, these machines
are very rare.
Our website: oldtimermotorenmuseum.be
greatings johan schaeverbeke
Oldtimer Museum, Belgium
I have attached a picture of my grandfather on his "La Mondiale". The picture was taken sometime in the early 1930's. (That type of license plate was introduced in Oct. 1930, the 'K' stands for København (Copenhagen, Denmark)). That is all the information I have been able to find on this bike.
If you have any information on "La Mondiale" or where to find out more, you are welcome to contact me on widell at mail1.stofanet.dk .
Here is the only link I've found with Mondiale-info (and it's not much):
users.globalnet.co.uk/~bikedoc/belgium.htm [404]
Hope you find any of this useful.
Regards
Jesper Widell -- widell at mail1.stofanet.dk
If you have a query about La Mondiale motorcycles please contact us
