1937 Delahaye 135M Torpedo Cabriolet

This Delahaye 135 MS Competition Special Roadster by Figoni & Falaschi was built on a short competition chassis with aluminum coachwork and a leather interior by Hermes. It debuted at the 1937 Paris Auto Salon where it was the most talked about car of the show. It has several features that were patented by Figoni & Falaschi, including the complicated curves of the radiator and front fenders, the disappearing soft top and the windscreen, which lowered into the body using a track with a counter-balanced cable system based on the same principle as a funicular railway.

This Special Roadster is a close sibing to the Coupe, built on the same Competition Court chassis and exhibiting the same patented and very desirable 'Ailes Figoni' - special enclosed and highly sculptured Figoni fenders. Built primarily as a show car, this Delahaye was shown by its first owner at concours all over Europe before he returned it to Figoni & Falaschi for some changes to the rather impractical body. Front and rear bumpers were added for protection in traffic and a revised radiator grille was installed, eliminating a cyclops-style headlight.

This Delahaye features a high-performance triple-carburetor engine, aluminum coachwork, and leather interior. Figoni patented not only the fenders on this Delahaye, but also the ultralight tubular seat, disappearing soft top, and the windscreen that recedes into the body.