So Rare - a photo on Flickriver

So Rare

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I first wish to express my sincere thanks to aguswiss1 www.flickr.com/photos/123634576@N06/ for so graciously allowing me to use his excellent picture as the subject of this composition. View original picture here

My original conception for incorporating this exquisite car into an Art Deco theme was to create a background having more Art Nouveau flourish. Thankfully my better judgement prevailed as this project begin to materialize. This beautiful 1949 Delahaye 135 M Saoutchik Cabriolet had to be the “center piece” of any artwork. I elected to create a simple “showcase” for this excellent picture of this luxurious automobile. I hope what has been created here is pleasing to the eye and produces impact.

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The Car

1949 Delahaye 135M Cabriolet
Coachwork by Saoutchik of Paris

3,557cc OHV Inline 6-Cylinder Engine
Single Solex Carburetor, 95bhp at 3,800rpm
4-Speed Manual Transmission
Independent Front Suspension – Live Rear Axle
4-Wheel Drum Brakes

THE DELAHAYE 135

Based initially at Tours, and from 1906 in Paris, Delahaye built its first automobile in 1894, and grew to become one of the most successful and innovative French luxury car manufacturers of the pre-war period. Delahaye started with building quality, belt-driven single and twin cylinder horseless carriages. His designs were so successful that he quickly needed significant investment to keep his business going. He was able to secure funding via some enthusiastic partners but, sadly, Delahaye did not live long enough to see his company's successes, and he died in 1905. But before he died, he hired some very influential and creative engineers who carried on his legacy with some truly spectacular machines. Many patents were issued to Delahaye prior to World War I and perhaps the most important were for a V6 cylinder layout as well as a twin-cam multi-valve engine. Delahaye as a company had quite amazing foresight for the 1910s.

Its early products tended to be rather pedestrian, but then in 1935 came the first of a new generation that would change the marque's image forever; the T135 Coupe Des Alpes. A fine sporting car, the T135 was powered by an engine, which, although designed for car use, had first appeared in a Delahaye commercial vehicle. The 3.2-liter, six-cylinder, overhead-valve unit produced 110bhp on triple Solex carburetors, while the chassis featured transverse-leaf independent front suspension, four-speed synchromesh or Cotal gearboxes, center-lock wire wheels and Bendix brakes.

Delahaye improved on the formula the following year with the 3.6-liter, 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. Prince Bira won the 1938 Donington 12-Hour Sports Car Race in Prince Chula's example and went on to take victory in Brooklands' 'fastest road car in England' race against some formidable opposition.

The model reappeared post-WW2 as the 135M with the 3.6-liter engine and lasted in production until 1951. By this time Delahaye was in serious financial difficulty as a result of the French government's taxation policies, which heavily penalized cars of over 3.0 liters, and in 1954 was taken over by Hotchkiss. Delahaye had no in-house coachworks, so all its chassis were bodied by independents, which created some of their most attractive designs on the Type 135. It was a most fortuitous partnership, resulting in memorable automotive sculpture from the likes of Saoutchik, Henry Chapron, Franay, Graber, Pennock and Figoni et Falaschi.

Source - Bonhams

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YouTube - Delahaye 135M Roadster 1949 (If you speak French)
youtu.be/e_KpP3al3wc

So Rare Jimmy Dorsey

NOTE: While I do not own copyright licensing to this artwork, together with the photographer, aguswiss1 and myself (Roger), this picture is governed under Creative Commons: All Rights Reserved

Taken on: June 9, 2013

Tags:

art deco

aguswiss1

135

Saoutchik

(The) Appleman « less

Sets appears in: • Curves of Steel - Automotive Excellence

Groups appears in: • Automotive Artistry • Car Art - Wheeled Art opted out of 30/60 more » • Auto française, années 40 (1940 à 1949) • Your Preferred Group « less

Camera: Sony DSLR-A900, f/9.0, 1/640 sec, 28mm, ISO 200 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Sony DSLR-A900
Aperture:	f/9.0
Exposure Time:	0.002 sec (1/640)
Focal Length:	28mm
ISO:	200
Flash:	Auto, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS6 (Macintosh)
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