Brand

Used vintage Gitane road bikes

Marcel Brunelière opened a repair shop in Machecoul, near Nantes, in 1925 and put the Gitane name on bicycles in 1930. The company became Micmo in 1960, and Renault bought 30 percent of it in 1974 and the rest in 1976. That's why the pro team became Renault-Gitane. Gitanes won the Tour with Jacques Anquetil in 1963 and 1964, Lucien Van Impe in 1976, Bernard Hinault in 1978, 1979, 1981 and 1982, and Laurent Fignon in 1983 and 1984. Hinault's fifth win, in 1985, came with La Vie Claire. Mel Pinto began importing Gitanes to the US in 1958, and in the bike boom the Tour de France, Interclub and Grand Sport De Luxe sold in big numbers. Renault sold Micmo in 1985, and Gitane joined Peugeot in Cycleurope in 1992. A 1970s Gitane dates best by its catalog parts and decals. Expect French threads and a so-so finish, since the factory used stickers with no clear coat.

3 models we cover.