• 1912 Delahaye Type 43 Landaulette • Coachwork by Chabrol Jeune, Toulouse • Registration no.

XZ 48 • Chassis no.

7041 Imported from France in 1991 Restored in 1992 Dry stored since acquisition in 2000 Requires recommissioning Based initially at Tours and from 1906 in Paris, Delahaye built its first automobile in 1895 and later branched out into commercial vehicle manufacture.

Emile Delahaye himself designed the early cars and remained with the company he had founded after its sale in 1897.

He retired in 1901 due to ill health, leaving Delahaye in the capable hands of production manager Charles Weiffenbach and chief engineer Amédée Varlet.

The firm built single- and twin-cylinder models initially, and introduced its first four-cylinder car – the Type 11 – in 1903.

In 1909, H M Hobson began importing Delahaye vehicles into the UK, while in 1911 Varlet invented and pioneered the V6 engine in the Type 44.

By the outbreak of The Great War, Delahaye had established a reputation for q...