Vehicle Description
Engine No. 815000
For Delahaye, the mid-1930s marked a strategic transformation
following its 1935 acquisition of rival marque Delage, a move that
repositioned the company from conservative truck and small car
manufacturing into racing and luxury car production. The
acquisition brought valuable technology that contributed to the
success of the Type 135, which in sports-racing Type 135S form,
achieved motorsport glory with victories including the 1938 24
Hours of Le Mans driven by Eugene Chaboud and Jean Tremoulet. The
model's successor was planned for debut at the October 1939 Paris
Auto Salon but was interrupted by World War II and further
complicated by the unexpected death of chief engineer Jean Fran�ois
in April 1944, ultimately delaying the car's introduction until
1948.
The long-awaited Type 175 represented a significant technical
evolution, featuring a 4.5-liter straight-six engine with seven
main bearings compared to the Type 135's four, along with advanced
independent front suspension and semi-monocoque chassis
construction. Like its predecessor, the platform proved ideal for
competition. Type 175S racecars featured an uprated 4.5-liter
overhead-valve straight-six built to a 9.1:1 compression ratio and
fed by three dual-choke carburetors, yielding over 220 horsepower.
Delahaye reserved its high-performance Type?175S variants for
privateer luminaries Charles?Pozzi and his compatriot
Eugene?Chaboud-co-founder of Ecurie?Lutetia and the 1947 French
racing champion. Chaboud and Pozzi campaigned these potent chassis
across Formula?One and endurance programs under the Ecurie?Lutetia
banner, including two consecutive 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1949 and
1950.
This faithful recreation of the Ecurie?Lutetia Le Mans contender
showcases the advanced engineering that made the Type 175S so
formidable, featuring a 4,455-cc overhead-valve inline six-cylinder
engine, fed by three Solex 40 AIP sidedraft carburetors and
delivering an estimated 165 horsepower at 4,200 rpm. Power is
transmitted through a desirable and period-correct four-speed Cotal
pre-selector gearbox. Rendered in wonderful French Racing Blue,
this recreation faithfully reproduces the original's open-cockpit
cycle fender coachwork in hand-formed aluminum. The car's authentic
appearance is completed by Rudge-style wire wheels housing
four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes.
This particular recreation, titled by its engine number 815000, was
presented at the 55th Pebble Beach Concours D'Elegance in 2005
where it was shown in the featured Delahaye class that year. The
car was subsequently acquired in 2011 by the renowned collection of
Peter and Merle Mullin-an exquisite gathering of coachbuilt, Art
Deco French automobiles-where it remained for over a decade until
the 2024 closing of the Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard,
California. Today, this fine recreation offers an authentic driving
experience that would make an intriguing addition to any collection
of historic endurance racing cars.
Please note this vehicle is titled by its engine number
