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Delahaye 135M Cabriolet (Restoration project) Chassis no. See…
Auction House:
Auction Location:
Sydney
Date:
13-Nov-2010
Lot No.
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Description:
Delahaye 135M Cabriolet (Restoration project) Chassis no. See textEngine no. 800816, based initially at Tours and from 1906 in Paris, Delahaye built its first automobile in 1894 and soon branched out into commercial vehicle manufacture. Founder Emile Delahaye de signed the cars and drove them in competitions during the firmÆs formative years before retiring in 1901 when Charles Weiffenbach ¦ æMonsieur CharlesÆ ¦ took over as Director. Am?d?e Varlet served as DelahayeÆs chief designer from then onwards, being responsible for its marine engines as well as those intended for road use. At this time the name of Delahaye was as renowned on water as on land, the sport of motor boat racing was dominated by Delahaye-powered craft, one of which established a new world Speed record of 54.50km/h (33.84mph), there proved to be little profit in this enterprise however, and the firm redirected its attention exclusively to road transport, greatly expanding its range of commercial vehicle types.up to the mid-1930s DelahayeÆs products tended to be rather lacklustre, but then in 1935 came the first of a new generation that would change the marqueÆs image forever - the T135 Coupe Des Alpes. De signed by VarletÆs successor Jean Francois, the T135 was a fine sporting car, albeit one which, somewhat paradoxically, borrowed its engine from one of its makerÆs trucks, the 3.2-litre, six-cylinder, overhead-valve unit produced 110bhp on triple Solex carburettors while the under-slung chassis featured transverse leaf independent front suspension, four-speed synchromesh or Cotal gearboxes, centre-lock wire wheels and large Bendix brakes.Delahaye improved on the formula the following year with the 3.6-litre, 120/130bhp T135MS, and the sports version was soon making a name for itself in competitions, taking 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th places in the run-to-sportscar-regulations 1936 French grand Prix and winning the Monte Carlo Rally and Le Mans 24-Hour Race outright in 1937 and 1938 respectively, the model reappeared post-World War II as the 135M with the 3.6-litre engine and lasted in production until superseded by the 235 in 1951. Relatively few Delahayes were sold after World War II, the result of FranceÆs punitive taxation rates for large cars. By 1954 the situation had become untenable and Delahaye merged with Hotchkiss, producing nothing but trucks thereafter.without doubt, the 135 transformed DelahayeÆs image and thus attracted the attention of FranceÆs finest coachbuilders, and many of their works on this chassis are among the most striking examples of automotive Art of the period. Productio
Estimate:
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Price:
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Category:
Motor Vehicles: Motor Cars