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Once among the most prestigious marks in the world, this 1939 Delahaye 135M is a super rare ultra-luxury car in need of some TLC.
An Epic Project Car
1939 Delahaye 135M – carsforsale.com | Shop Delahaye 135M on Carsforsale.com
Good ROI, or return on investment, can be hard to come by in project cars. For every market darling like the BMW E30 M3 there is an ‘83 GMC Vandura with a Conan the Barbarian-themed airbrush mural on the side and wall-to-wall shag carpeting inside. One has seen incredible appreciation over the years while the other is the definition of a money pit.
Today’s Cool Car Find might look like a money pit at first glance, but it is in fact the perfect candidate for a high-end restoration job. The car in question is a 1939 Delahaye 135M. This cabriolet is one of just two such cars coach-built by Letourneur et Marchand in 1939. To understand what makes this car special, let us first look back at the French carmaker and then consider this unique example itself.
Delahaye and the 135
Delahaye dates to the early days of the automobile, founded by Frenchman Emile Delahaye in 1894. The company produced buses and trucks, including a vast number of fire trucks, in addition to road cars and eventually racecars. It is Delahaye’s road cars for which they have become best known among today’s high-end collectors. Delahaye himself sold out of the business in 1901, but his company would go on to produce some of the world’s most desirable and expensive cars in the world.
Delahaye’s road cars were typically coach-built affairs, with the best European designers applying their own flair and ingenuity to produce some of the era’s most striking automobiles, with tear drop fenders and regally long hoods predominating. These were the status symbols and playthings of the world’s rich and famous. The price of a new Delahaye in the 1930s was often tenfold that of a Cadillac.
Delahaye first began producing racing cars for competition in 1932. The Delahaye 135 made its debut a few short years later in 1935 as the company’s sportiest car to date. The 135 was called the Coupe de Alps after its initial success in the Alpine Trial Rally. The car ran a 3227cc (3.2L) overhead valve straight-six. Horsepower depended on the carburetor set up with the single carb versions making 76 or 90 hp, the twin carb making 95 hp, and the triple carb version with 110 hp. That first year, the Delahaye 135 began posting wins, 18 in all, at minor French circuit races as well as a fifth place showing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
In 1936, the Delahaye 135 was given a larger displacement engine, now 3557cc (3.5L), resulting in 90, 105, and 115 horsepower version (again depending on the carburetor setup). The Delahaye 135 would be produced from 1935 through the company’s sale (to Hotchkiss) and subsequent dissolution in 1954. Over that time the Delahaye 135 racked up numerous racing wins, most notably at the 1937 Monte Carlo Rally, the 1938 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the 1949 Australian Grand Prix.
Rarest of the Rare
1939 Delahaye 135M – carsforsale.com | Shop Delahaye 135M on Carsforsale.com
Our Cool Car Find is one of 84 Delahaye 135s ever built and just one of two cabriolet 135Ms coach-built by Letourneur et Marchand in 1939. The car’s history is obscure prior to its 1960 importation to the US, Connecticut specifically. After decades in storage, the car’s condition has suffered a good deal. While it could be preserved as-is for a museum piece, our hope would be for a buying looking to perform a restoration on this unique vehicle. While considerable, the investment in a restoration would likely be cash positive given prices for restored vintage Delahayes often run into the millions of dollars.
For a project car to end all project cars and the chance to win a best-in-show at some future Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance, the asking price of $185,000 for this ultrarare 1939 Delahaye 135M could prove the steal of a lifetime.
So… where is the other of the 2?