1938/39 Delage D8-120 AĂŠrosport Coupe Coachwork by LeTourneur et Marchand
1938/39 Delage D8-120 Aérosport Coupe Coachwork by LeTourneur et Marchand Chassis No. 51617 Engine No. 51617
by
Kane Rogers
photography by
Davi d N ew hardt
Vehicle to be offered as Lot S150 at Mecum’s Daytime Auction in Monterey August 15 - 17, 2013 Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa on Del Monte Golf Course Monterey, California U.S.A. Auction Company: Mecum Auction, Inc - CA License # 81410 Principal Auctioneer: Mark G. Delzell
Mecum.COM 262-275-5050
Imperious and strong-willed, Louis Delage ran his automobile company from its founding in 1905 to its liquidation at the height of the Great Depression with unbending authority. The graduate of the École Nationale d’Arts et Métiers spent two years at Peugeot before starting his own Paris firm in partnership with fellow engineer Augustin Legros. Delage pioneered the exploitation of racing success to sell cars, first earning national acclaim by taking 2nd place at the 1906 Coupe des Voiturettes de L’Auto. Rapid expansion followed. Bolstered by wartime profits, Automobiles Delage emerged from WWI poised to establish a line of luxury automobiles and to maximize sales with more racing victories. After winning the 1927 Grand Prix World Championship at almost crippling expense, Delage turned his attention to producing beautifully engineered chassis and drivetrains clothed by Europe’s leading coachbuilders and prized by such owners as entertainer Josephine Baker and Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie.
By the 1930s the majestic French marque was hemorrhaging both money and disaffected talent, and in 1935 Delage was forced to liquidate its assets, which were eventually purchased by Delahaye. The first new design of the Delahaye era, the D8-120, was also the most memorable. Built on a Delahaye chassis, the D8-120 was the only 8-cylinder-powered car in the entire Delage-Delahaye range. Its chromed flexpipe exhaust system, sweeping voluptuousness and regal countenance made it the belle of the Concours d’Elegance circuit and an immortal classic, once again attracting the ministrations of the top designers, most notably LeTourneur et Marchand, who created the elegant Aerosport coupe offered here.
Long considered the most attractive design in Delage history, the Aerosport was the work of the brilliant Marcel LeTourneur, who today ranks alongside the renowned Jean Bugatti as one of the greatest young French designers of the 1930s. Just 12 Aerosport coupes were built (not counting the less attractive notchback coupes), all featuring long hoods, flowing fenders and a unique roof design incorporating dramatic downward-sweeping pillarless side windows. At almost 18 feet in length, the Aerosport was a large but beautifully styled and proportioned automobile whose lightweight alloy body easily enabled prolonged cruising at highway speeds. The final iteration of the Aerosport, design number 5941, was reserved for this car, chassis number 51617. A late Series 2 car with a lower roofline, it is the 11th built of the series of 12 cars, eight of which remain extant today. Recently imported from Copenhagen by a Sarasota, Florida, museum, its entire history and ownership are very well chronicled.
Ordered by French aviation pioneer and manufacturer Felix Amiot, the car was delivered to LeTourneur et Marchand on February 1, 1939 and completed later that spring. At the beginning of the German occupation in June 1940 the car was requisitioned by the Wehrmacht for a German officer and sent to occupied Denmark in September 1940. After Denmark’s liberation in May 1945 the car was confiscated by the newly re-established Danish government, where it assigned a new documented title number D838120 with engine number 51617 (both remaining with car today) and sold it to national resistance hero Jens Lillelund. It passed then to Danish industrialist Knud Vilhelm Count Schulin, who demonstrated the Aerosport’s performance when he almost succeeded in outrunning the police on his way to catching a ferry; the incident, which ended with a record-setting fine, was reported in the national media, immortalizing both the Aerosport and its driver in Danish automotive lore. The Count’s
1 9 3 8 / 9 D E L AG E D 8 - 1 2 0 A érosport C O U PE S PE C I F I C AT I O N S • Model: D8 120 • Year: 1938/39 • Engine Ser: #D8 120 51617 • Style: “Aero sport – Two door, four place coach” • Coachwork by Letourneur et Marchand, • Chassis: Wheelbase 133 inches • Track: 56 inches
• Engine: 8 cylinders • B/S: 84x107mm • Capacity: 4743cc • Type: OHV 115HP • Gearbox: Cotal Electro-magnetic • Performance: Approximate figures: • 0 to 60 MPH – 17 seconds • Top Speed: 100 MPH
company, DAPA, manufactured heavy truck trailers; the Delage was parked outside a DAPA factory with a “For Sale” sign when it was discovered by its next owner, prominent Copenhagen attorney Hans Jorgen Beier in 1956. Beier had the somewhat run-down Delage fully restored in 1957, and again in a two-year project completed in 1999. A most enthusiastic owner and caretaker, Mr. Beier amassed a huge collection of handbooks, instruction manuals and historic marque information, all of which accompany the car. After 57 years of single ownership, in 2013 the car was imported directly to Florida, where it was rallied and shown at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance in non-judged display-only status. Always carefully maintained, this magnificent French automotive objet d’art still presents in excellent condition today.
1 9 3 8 / 3 9 D E L AG E D 8 - 1 2 0 A érosport C O U PE
OW N E R H I S T O RY • First Owner: Felix Amiot
Mr. Amiot was born to a relatively wealthy family in Cherbourg, Normandy. In 1908 they moved to Issyles-Molineaux, a center for the budding French aviation industry, where he built his first aircraft in 1912. After a stint in the frontlines at the beginning of WWI, he was recalled to aid in warplane development and founded his first company, “SECM” to make aircraft engines and parts. His success as an inventor and businessman enabled the purchase of the Delage which the L&M records show delivered to him at his firm, Avions Amiot, on August 2, 1939. Surrendering the Delage to the Wehrmacht must have been a traumatic experience! In spite of aiding the escape of refugees, Amiot’s association with the Junkers aircraft firm protected him through the war and he emerged with resources to found a successful shipyard in Cherbourg.
• Second Possession: The Wehrmacht
After requisitioning by the German military authorities, the Delage was assigned to an officer, probably of the rank of General to be awarded such a prestigious automobile. The officer and Delage were stationed in Denmark during its occupation from September 9, 1940 until the retreat in May of 1945. • Third Possession: Recovering assets after the departure of the occupiers, the Danish government laid claim to the Delage and perhaps in appreciation for his service, sold it to Jens Lillelund in 1947. • Fourth Owner: Jens Lillelund was born in Lime, Randers County, Denmark. His father, Jens Peter Lillelund, was a member of parliament. After an education in commerce, he was employed in 1940 as sales manager for an American auto company in Copenhagen. On the first day of occupation, he engaged in provocative behavior toward Wehrmacht
A Delage Company file photo of 51617. Image from same photoshoot featured on page 105 of Richard S. Adatto and Diana E. Meredith’s “Delage Styling and Design”
personnel which resulted in a short imprisonment. Amazingly released, he began working with a Danish resistance group which became known as “Holger Dansk.” Their activities included underground newspaper work and acts of sabotage. One of their famous operations was the destruction of the “Forum,” a convention center of the time, then occupied by Wehrmacht troops.
Another was an attack on Burmeister and Wain, a shipbuilding and Diesel engine firm. Lillelund’s activities made him a hunted man and several times he evaded capture by fleeing to Sweden. After the war he was involved in politics and several philanthropic organizations and founded the company which bears his name to this day, making lifts and other machinery.
51617 offered for sale at Count Schulin’s DAPA Company before being sold to Hans Jorgen Beier in 1956, who would own it for the next 57 years.
• Fifth Owner: Knud Vilhelm Count Schulin
Born into a noble Danish family in 1894, Count Schulin became a wealthy industrialist. Attesting to the performance of the Delage, he was once assessed a record setting fine for attempting to outrun police to meet a ferry.
His firm, DAPA, manufactured heavy truck trailers and is still in business today. The Delage was parked outside a DAPA factory building with a “For Sale” sign when found by its subsequent buyer, Mr. Beier in 1956.
51617 offered for sale as described in a local newspaper ad in April, 1956.
• Sixth Owner: Hans Jorgen Beier, Esq.
Mr. Beier, a prominent attorney in Copenhagen, Denmark, purchased the Delage which was by now in a well-used state. Having already a classic Packard, he readily appreciated the potential of the Delage. A full restoration was embarked upon which was completed in 1957. After 40 years of use, Mr. Beier commissioned a two-year restoration which was completed in April of 1999. Carefully maintained since, it remains in excellent condition today. Thanks to the diligent efforts of Mr. Beier, a massive collection of handbooks, instruction manuals and information on the marque was preserved and remains with the car. • Imported into the U.S. March 2013 from Copenhagen.
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