1938 Delahaye 135 MS Coupe by Figoni et Falaschi
Offered by RM Auctions | Phoenix, Arizona | January 18, 2013
Guess what my favorite feature of this car is. It isn’t the beautiful Figoni & Falaschi-styled body. It’s that French flag on the grille. How cool. I almost didn’t feature this car, but that colorful grille alone sold me on it – that and I’ve yet to feature a Delahaye 135 MS – however I have done a 135 M.
So what’s the difference? More horsepower, of course. While the M lumbered around with up to 115 horsepower, the 3.6-liter straight six in the MS offered 160 horsepower. The “Teardrop” bodystyle is the most famous style from French coachbuilders Figoni & Falaschi. It’s also the one that it usually shown as the “typical” French coachbuilt body of the period. It is certainly nice.
This car was on the Figoni et Falaschi stand at the 1938 Paris Salon and disappeared shortly thereafter, being rediscovered in 1964. It was restored in the late 1980s and was acquired by John O’Quinn in 2006, who had it restored again. It is being offered with an invitation to the 2013 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, which it could win. It should sell for between $1,000,000-$1,400,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of RM’s Arizona lineup.
