Maximilien Gagnebin
Senior Specialist
LOT 126 *
1938 Delage D8-120 Cabriolet Coachwork by Henri Chapron Chassis no. 51 757 Engine no. 51 757
Sold for €460,000 inc. premiumLot to be sold without reserve
Lot 126*
Offered from Les Belles Endormies - The Pierre Strinati Collection
1938 Delage D8-120 Cabriolet
1938 Delage D8-120 Cabriolet
1938 Delage D8-120 Cabriolet
Coachwork by Henri Chapron
Chassis no. 51 757
Engine no. 51 757
Coachwork by Henri Chapron
Chassis no. 51 757
Engine no. 51 757
• The ultimate expression of the eight-cylinder Delage
• Delivered new to and always resident in Switzerland
• Matching numbers and very well preserved
• Known ownership history
• Present ownership since circa 1960/1961
• Requires recommissioning
"Delage have to their credit many world's records, including a world's championship, and more awards at the principal Concours d'Élégance than any other car in the world... To these achievements Delage have added a third and greater. They have made the highest known degree of luxury and performance available at the price the average motorist can pay."
Delage's publicity had every right to sing the praises of what - arguably - was the finest French car of its day and the only one that could be mentioned in the same breath as the 32CV Hispano-Suiza in terms of elegance and engineering excellence. Founded in 1905 by Louis Delage, the company commenced production with a single-cylinder De Dion-engined runabout and within a few years was offering multi-cylinder designs. The publicity value of racing was recognised right from the start, a single-cylinder Delage winning the Coupe Des Voiturettes as early as 1908 and Louis himself taking the 1911 Coupe de l'Auto in a 3-litre four-cylinder. Victories at the Grand Prix du Mans and the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race were achieved prior to WWI, the company going on to become a major force in Grand Prix racing in the 1920s and setting a new World Land Speed Record mark in 1924 with a 10.7-litre overhead-valve V12.
Four- and six-cylinder D-series cars formed the mainstay of the company's touring car production in the 1920s, and then at the 1929 Paris Salon Delage launched the Maurice Gaultier-designed D8. A magnificent 4.0-litre overhead-valve straight-eight featuring an X-braced chassis and servo-assisted Perrot-type brakes, the D8 was destined to attract the creative attentions of Europe's finest coachbuilders. The impressive list of discerning D8 owners includes King Gustav V of Sweden, King Alexander of Yugoslavia, and Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia as well as leading businessmen, politicians, and film stars of the day. The Autocar magazine said this of the D8: "...all the speed that can possibly wanted, and extremely rapid acceleration are obtained with practically no noise at all, and driven normally the car is docile..."
Along with many other manufacturers of quality cars, Delage was badly affected by the economic downturn of the early 1930s. Despite the favourable reception for its new range, Automobiles Delage went into receivership in April 1935 and shortly thereafter was taken over by Delahaye. The Delahaye takeover spelled the end for the original D8. From then onwards, Delages were built to Delahaye designs but retained their own superior short-stroke engines and hydraulic brakes.
The post-war years were difficult times for makers of large and luxurious automobiles in France. Taxation rates were punitive for cars of over 2 litres, choking off demand, and in 1950 the combined total production of Delahaye and Delage was only 235 units. This unsustainable situation worsened over the next two years and in 1953 Delage production stopped. It was a sad end to a once great marque.
Representing the ultimate expression of the eight-cylinder Delage, this supremely elegant D8-120 was ordered in December 1938 by the Swiss Delage and Delahaye representative Albert Goy of Garage du Kursaal in Geneva for their customer, Mr Gossweiler of Bern. Delahaye commissioned the cabriolet body from the celebrated Parisian coachbuilder Henri Chapron, who completed the work the following summer.
The car comes with copies of the factory records stating that it was ordered in black with a red interior and a black alpaca hood, while a thin red coachline was applied to the body. The Delage was specifically ordered with Securit glass; two indicators at the front and at the rear; two extra fog lights; an extra powerful horn; and a steering column-mounted ignition key doubling as an anti-theft device. The client also specifically requested that the rear seats should be removable and that the rear floor was to be flat so he could store bulky luggage such as hunting gear (Chapron refused to comply with that last request blaming the shape of the chassis as an excuse).
There is a wealth of correspondence with all parties mentioned above, most interestingly a very detailed letter from Mr Gossweiler complaining about the poor build quality of the bodywork, most notably the fixing of the dashboard and the hood cover (which he had remade). Mr Gossweiler considered keeping the amount he was due to pay upon collecting the car as a guarantee for the work that was to be carried out on it!
This car has always stayed in Switzerland and was later owned - in 1949 - by the Industrialist Ludwig Zweifel of Glaris (CH) and then by dentist Walter Meier domiciled in Blonay (in the Vaud canton) from 1953. Pierre Strinati bought the Delage circa 1960/1961 from Carrosserie Graber, who fully repainted the car and retrimmed the hood in April 1961 (bill on file). The paintwork was changed to two-tone dark grey over black (probably during Mr Strinati's ownership), which suits the D8 very well. The leather interior remains original, as does the rest of the car.
More recently the Delage was pictured in Henry Rasmussen's book The Survivors. A copy of the latter is on file and the car also comes with old Swiss registration papers. Recommissioning will be required following a lengthy period of inactivity. Close inspection recommended.
Please note that if this vehicle is sold to a French private buyer or an EU private individual the reduced rate of Import VAT at 5.5% will be charged on the hammer price. The Import VAT will be invoiced to you by our custom broker who will also charge a clearance fee. If you buy as a Trader or Company however, the Finances Publiques will charge you directly (based on our customs broker clearance) and the French VAT Import Charges will not appear on your Bonhams invoice. Please note that if you purchase as an EU Company, you are required to pay the VAT in your registered country at the relevant rate. Import rates to other EU Countries may vary and an administration fee will be charged to prepare the necessary customs clearance. If you have any questions regarding customs clearance, please contact the Bonhams Motorcar Department or our recommended shippers.
• Delivered new to and always resident in Switzerland
• Matching numbers and very well preserved
• Known ownership history
• Present ownership since circa 1960/1961
• Requires recommissioning
"Delage have to their credit many world's records, including a world's championship, and more awards at the principal Concours d'Élégance than any other car in the world... To these achievements Delage have added a third and greater. They have made the highest known degree of luxury and performance available at the price the average motorist can pay."
Delage's publicity had every right to sing the praises of what - arguably - was the finest French car of its day and the only one that could be mentioned in the same breath as the 32CV Hispano-Suiza in terms of elegance and engineering excellence. Founded in 1905 by Louis Delage, the company commenced production with a single-cylinder De Dion-engined runabout and within a few years was offering multi-cylinder designs. The publicity value of racing was recognised right from the start, a single-cylinder Delage winning the Coupe Des Voiturettes as early as 1908 and Louis himself taking the 1911 Coupe de l'Auto in a 3-litre four-cylinder. Victories at the Grand Prix du Mans and the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race were achieved prior to WWI, the company going on to become a major force in Grand Prix racing in the 1920s and setting a new World Land Speed Record mark in 1924 with a 10.7-litre overhead-valve V12.
Four- and six-cylinder D-series cars formed the mainstay of the company's touring car production in the 1920s, and then at the 1929 Paris Salon Delage launched the Maurice Gaultier-designed D8. A magnificent 4.0-litre overhead-valve straight-eight featuring an X-braced chassis and servo-assisted Perrot-type brakes, the D8 was destined to attract the creative attentions of Europe's finest coachbuilders. The impressive list of discerning D8 owners includes King Gustav V of Sweden, King Alexander of Yugoslavia, and Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia as well as leading businessmen, politicians, and film stars of the day. The Autocar magazine said this of the D8: "...all the speed that can possibly wanted, and extremely rapid acceleration are obtained with practically no noise at all, and driven normally the car is docile..."
Along with many other manufacturers of quality cars, Delage was badly affected by the economic downturn of the early 1930s. Despite the favourable reception for its new range, Automobiles Delage went into receivership in April 1935 and shortly thereafter was taken over by Delahaye. The Delahaye takeover spelled the end for the original D8. From then onwards, Delages were built to Delahaye designs but retained their own superior short-stroke engines and hydraulic brakes.
The post-war years were difficult times for makers of large and luxurious automobiles in France. Taxation rates were punitive for cars of over 2 litres, choking off demand, and in 1950 the combined total production of Delahaye and Delage was only 235 units. This unsustainable situation worsened over the next two years and in 1953 Delage production stopped. It was a sad end to a once great marque.
Representing the ultimate expression of the eight-cylinder Delage, this supremely elegant D8-120 was ordered in December 1938 by the Swiss Delage and Delahaye representative Albert Goy of Garage du Kursaal in Geneva for their customer, Mr Gossweiler of Bern. Delahaye commissioned the cabriolet body from the celebrated Parisian coachbuilder Henri Chapron, who completed the work the following summer.
The car comes with copies of the factory records stating that it was ordered in black with a red interior and a black alpaca hood, while a thin red coachline was applied to the body. The Delage was specifically ordered with Securit glass; two indicators at the front and at the rear; two extra fog lights; an extra powerful horn; and a steering column-mounted ignition key doubling as an anti-theft device. The client also specifically requested that the rear seats should be removable and that the rear floor was to be flat so he could store bulky luggage such as hunting gear (Chapron refused to comply with that last request blaming the shape of the chassis as an excuse).
There is a wealth of correspondence with all parties mentioned above, most interestingly a very detailed letter from Mr Gossweiler complaining about the poor build quality of the bodywork, most notably the fixing of the dashboard and the hood cover (which he had remade). Mr Gossweiler considered keeping the amount he was due to pay upon collecting the car as a guarantee for the work that was to be carried out on it!
This car has always stayed in Switzerland and was later owned - in 1949 - by the Industrialist Ludwig Zweifel of Glaris (CH) and then by dentist Walter Meier domiciled in Blonay (in the Vaud canton) from 1953. Pierre Strinati bought the Delage circa 1960/1961 from Carrosserie Graber, who fully repainted the car and retrimmed the hood in April 1961 (bill on file). The paintwork was changed to two-tone dark grey over black (probably during Mr Strinati's ownership), which suits the D8 very well. The leather interior remains original, as does the rest of the car.
More recently the Delage was pictured in Henry Rasmussen's book The Survivors. A copy of the latter is on file and the car also comes with old Swiss registration papers. Recommissioning will be required following a lengthy period of inactivity. Close inspection recommended.
Please note that if this vehicle is sold to a French private buyer or an EU private individual the reduced rate of Import VAT at 5.5% will be charged on the hammer price. The Import VAT will be invoiced to you by our custom broker who will also charge a clearance fee. If you buy as a Trader or Company however, the Finances Publiques will charge you directly (based on our customs broker clearance) and the French VAT Import Charges will not appear on your Bonhams invoice. Please note that if you purchase as an EU Company, you are required to pay the VAT in your registered country at the relevant rate. Import rates to other EU Countries may vary and an administration fee will be charged to prepare the necessary customs clearance. If you have any questions regarding customs clearance, please contact the Bonhams Motorcar Department or our recommended shippers.
Footnotes
Les Belles Endormies – Collection Pierre Strinati
1938 Delage D8-120 Cabriolet
Coachwork by Henri Chapron
Chassis no. 51 757
Engine no. 51 757
• Sommet de la gamme huit-cylindres Delage
• Voiture suisse depuis sa livraison.
• Matching numbers et très bien préservée.
• Historique connu.
• Même propriétaire depuis le début des années 1960.
• Nécessite une remise en état avant de reprendre la route.
« Delage possède à son actif de nombreux records du monde, ceci incluant un championnat du monde, et plus d'accolades aux principaux Concours d'Élégance qu'aucune autre voiture au monde... À ces succès, Delage en a ajouté un troisième, plus important encore : elle a offert au conducteur le maximum de luxe et de performance disponibles à un prix abordable. »
La publicité de Delage pouvait se targuer de ce qui était probablement la meilleure voiture de son époque et la seule qui pouvait être mentionnée, en termes de qualité d'ingénierie et d'élégance, aux côtés de l'Hispano-Suiza 32CV. Fondée en 1905 par Louis Delage, la compagnie éponyme commença sa production avec une voiturette propulsée par un mono-cylindre De Dion. Quelques années plus tard, son catalogue s'était étoffé de modèles multi-cylindres. Delage a immédiatement capitalisé sur la valeur publicitaire de la compétition après qu'une mono-cylindre Delage gagne la Coupe des Voiturettes en 1908, Louis Delage lui-même ressortant vainqueur de la Coupe de l'Auto au volant d'un modèle de 4-cylindres de 3 litres. Avant l'avènement de la Première Guerre mondiale, des victoires au Grand Prix du Mans et au 500 Miles d'Indianapolis sont à remarquer. La marque devint une force majeure des Grands Prix de l'entre-deux-guerres et parvint à établir un record de vitesse en 1924 avec une voiture équipée d'un moteur V12, à soupapes en tête et d'une cylindrée de 10,7 litres.
Dans les années 1920, le type D (munit de moteurs de quatre et six cylindres) représenta par la suite la plus grande partie de la production des automobiles de tourisme. Puis, au Salon de Paris de 1929, Delage introduisit la D8 conçue par Maurice Gaultier. La combinaison d'un sublime moteur 8-cylindres en ligne de 4 litres avec soupapes en tête, d'un châssis renforcé en X et d'un système de freinage de type Perrot servo-assisté était conçue pour attirer tous les meilleurs carrossiers de l'époque. La liste impressionnante des commanditaires du modèle D8 comportait notamment le roi Gustav V de Suède, le roi Alexandre de Yougoslavie, l'empereur Haile Selassie d'Éthiopie ainsi que des politiciens, hommes d'affaires et stars de cinéma de l'époque. Le magazine The Autocar disait de la D8 : « ...toute la vitesse que l'on peut exiger et une accélération extrêmement rapide sont obtenues dans le silence le plus complet, et à basse vitesse la voiture est parfaitement docile... »
Comme de nombreux autres fabricants de voitures de qualité, Delage fut extrêmement affectée par la crise économique du tournant des années 1930. Malgré l'accueil favorable de sa nouvelle gamme, les Automobiles Delage tombèrent en faillite en avril 1935 et furent peu après rachetées par Delahaye. Ce rachat marqua la fin de la D8 telle qu'elle avait été initialement conçue. À compter de cette date, les Delages furent construites selon des conceptions Delahaye mais conservèrent leur propre moteur à course courte et leurs freins hydrauliques, tous deux de qualité supérieure.
Les années d'après-guerre s'avérèrent difficiles pour l'automobile de luxe en France. Les taxes punitives pour tout véhicule de plus de 2 litres ralentirent la demande et, en 1950, la production combinée de Delahaye et Delage n'atteint que 235 exemplaires. Cette situation s'aggrava au cours des deux années qui suivirent, et en 1953 la production de Delage vint à son terme : une fin bien triste pour une marque de renommée internationale.
Représentant l'expression ultime du moteur 8-cylindres Delage, cette somptueuse D8-120 a été commandée en décembre 1938 par le représentant Delage et Delahaye helvétique, Albert Goy du Garage du Kursaal sis à Genève, pour leur client M. Gossweiler de Berne. Delahaye a mandaté Henri Chapron pour réaliser la carrosserie cabriolet, terminée l'été suivant.
Cette voiture est vendue avec des copies des archives d'usine attestant qu'elle a été commandée noire avec un intérieur en cuir rouge et un toit en alpaga noir, avec une ligne de caisse démarquée par un mince filet rouge. Cette Delage a été spécifiée avec du verre Securit ; deux clignotants à l'avant et à l'arrière ; deux feux anti-brouillard supplémentaires ; un avertisseur extra-puissant ; une clé de contact montée sur la colonne de direction ayant également pour particularité d'agir comme anti-vol en bloquant la direction. Le client spécifia également que les sièges arrière soient amovibles et que le plancher alors révélé soit parfaitement plat pour pouvoir y stocker des bagages volumineux, comme du matériel de chasse (Chapron refusa de se plier à cette requête invoquant la forme du châssis pour se justifier).
Une quantité impressionnante de correspondance avec les acteurs susmentionnés se trouve au dossier, ainsi qu'une lettre extrêmement détaillée de M. Gossweiler se plaignant de la qualité médiocre de la carrosserie, notamment la fixation du tableau de bord et la housse de capote (qu'il fit refaire). À tel point qu'il considéra garder la somme qu'il devait verser à la livraison de la voiture comme garantie de la bonne exécution des travaux à effectuer !
Cette voiture est toujours restée en Suisse et a été ensuite possédée – en 1949 – par l'industriel Ludwig Zweifel de Glaris, puis par le dentiste Walter Meier domicilié à Blonay (dans le canton de Vaud) à compter de 1953. Pierre Strinati acquit la Delage au début des années 1960 (vraisemblablement en 1961) à la Carrosserie Graber, qui la repeignit entièrement et régarnit le toit en avril 1961 (voir facture au dossier). La peinture fut changée du noir pour une teinte bicolore gris foncé sur noir (vraisemblablement par Graber en 1961) qui sied à la voiture. Le cuir reste quant à lui complètement d'origine, tout comme le reste de la voiture.
Plus récemment, la Delage a été photographiée dans le livre d'Henri Rasmussen The Survivors – dont une copie est au dossier. La voiture est également accompagnée de papiers suisses d'époque. Une remise en route sera toutefois nécessaire après une longue période d'inactivité. Une inspection détaillée de cette magnifique automobile est néanmoins recommandée.
Veuillez noter que, si ce véhicule est vendu à un acheteur français privé ou à un particulier membre d'un pays de l'UE, le taux réduit de TVA d'importation de 5,5% sera appliqué au prix d'adjudication. La TVA d'importation vous sera facturée par notre courtier en douane qui vous facturera aussi des frais de dédouanement. Toutefois, si vous achetez en tant que marchand ou que société, les Finances Publiques vous factureront directement (sur la base du dédouanement effectué par notre courtier en douane) et la TVA française d'importation n'apparaîtra pas sur la facture que Bonhams vous délivrera. Veuillez noter que, si vous achetez en tant que société de l'UE, vous devez payer la TVA dans votre pays d'immatriculation, au taux en vigueur. Les taux pour importation dans les autres pays de l'UE peuvent varier, et il vous sera facturé des frais administratifs relatifs à la préparation des opérations de dédouanement. Pour toute question relative au dédouanement, veuillez contacter le département Motorcar de Bonhams ou les sociétés de transport que nous recommandons.
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| * | Import low rate |
| VAT on imported items at a reduced rate of 5.5% on the hammer price and the prevailing rate on buyer's premium if the item remains in EU. TVA sur les objets importés à un taux réduit de 5.5% sur le prix d'adjudication et un taux en vigueur sur la prime d'achat dans le cas où l'objet reste dans l'Union Européenne. |
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