Beschreibung:

If you happen to find yourself in the Paris suburb of Levallois, ask directions to 62 rue Chaptal. There you might discover a plaque that commemorates the location where in January 1905 a young French engineer previously employed by Peugeot, one Louis Delage, started an automobile company bearing his name. While later he would be described as “one of the last master craftsmen in steel,” at first Delage combined engines and drivetrains from other suppliers but soon branched out on his own and by 1908 was competing in Grand Prix motor racing. The Delage enterprise fared well, gaining fame and some degree of fortune via their high quality, well-engineered touring and luxury saloon cars. In the capable hands of Great Britain's Dick Seaman and female driver Kay Petre, Delage racecars took the checkered flag winning many races as did France's Robert Benoist and René Thomas. In 1914, Thomas ventured to the United States driving a Delage to victory at no less than the Indianapolis 500 then in 1924 set a new land speed record at 143mph (230km/h). The Delage marquee had indeed made its mark in international competition, further enhanced by its winning of the first-ever British Grand Prix, held in 1926, the French team of Louis Wagner and Robert Sénéchal taking turns behind the wheel of a Delage 155B. Throughout the mid 1920s, Delage vehicles dominated racing winning the British, French, Spanish and Italian Grand Prix races. The Delage D8 touring car, first introduced at the 1929 Paris Motor Show, is the largest and most luxurious car built by the company and an outstandingly elegant car superbly powered by a large water-cooled, overhead valve Straight-8 engine benefiting from a very efficient pressure lubrication system and vacuum fed carburetion mated to a dry-clutch and four-speed unit gearbox. It was made available beginning in 1930 with various wheelbase lengths to allow for different coachbuilt bodies. Most of these treasured automobiles now reside in museums. Now one such rarity has become available. The D8 105 was first presented in October 1934 at the Paris automobile show. Production was set at two frames per month, but those plans changed radically in April 1935 when the company was purchased by the famous Delahaye car company. As a result the 1935 example seen here is the fourth of only eight Delage D8 105 chassis built and perhaps only one of four built with the Sports specifications. Today it is the only such car known to exist. While originally grey with a blue roof, upon restoration its steel body with aluminum bonnet was dressed in a rich Claret with beige paint scheme while inside one finds beige “tissue” seats set off by claret piping with matching claret carpeting. Beneath that long sweeping bonnet resides an engine displacing 3570cc mated to an optional Cotal gearbox. Further Sports Specifications including twin ignitions (16 spark plugs) and twin Stromberg carburetors. Output is 100hp at 4500rpm while bodyweight is 1720kg or 3850lb. In keeping with its performance orientation, the chassis is a shortened version of 325cm. Adding to its sporting character, the low roofline, aerodynamic Delage bodywork features an inclined radiator and front windscreen while the interior is also lightened. Other details include sliding glass windows, twin rear windows and sliding door glasses. It appears that this car served as a factory demonstrator after being built in January-February 1935 and thereafter first registered in Paris as 42286RK6 on October 13, 1936. It second owner, a Mr. Carabin of Paris, drove the car with license plate 7046 DU 75. In 1960, its third owner, Baron Petiet of Paris (brother of the President of the French Automotive Industry Chamber, provided the car to the planned Musee de Montlhèry which never came into being. The car languished for several years but also appeared in several classic car books of the 1960-1970s. Finally in the 1990s the car was extensively restored in France, then in 2000 acquired by a c