1938 Talbot-Lago T23

Model History

Auction sales research

Specifications

Body styles and Chassis Data

Exterior Photos Interior Photos

Coupe Designer: Figoni & Falaschi Chassis Num: 93041   Talbot-Lago was a company formed by the collapse of Sunbeam-Talbot-Darracq in 1935. Anthony Lago, founder of the company, set-out to produce a line of exclusive and expensive sports cars. The cars initially used six-cylinder engines, but later models featured eight-cylinder engines, and the occasional cheaper engines to help increase sales. The Talbots featured metallic paints and dual-tone finishes. This was the influence of Figoni. Chrome was decorated along the edgework of many of his vehicles. In 1959 the company was taken over by Simca. This 1938 Talbot Talbot T23 Coupe with coachwork by Figoni & Falaschi is a previous Ault Park Concours d'Elegance 'Best of Show' winner. Italian Giuseppe Figoni immigrated with his family to Paris where he apprenticed in a coach works that eventually became Carrosserie Automobilie in Bologne-sur-Seine near Paris's famous Longchamp race course, a mecca for the Parisian carriage trade. in 1935 Figoni acquire a partner, businessman Ovidio Falaschi creating 'Fignoi et Falaschi'. Figoni's automobile designs were flamboyant, graceful and gorgeous, carefully sculpted with the eye of an artist who had an inherent appreciation for the air flow. Upon the collapse of STD (Sunbeam-Talbot-Darrocq) in 1935 the French Talbot Company was reorganized by Anthony Lago and since then, the Talbot-Lago name was used. This vehicle is built on the company's long-wheelbase chassis and is powered by a 4-liter six-cylinder engine with dual carburetors. Its radical Figoni & Falaschi coachwork was the first of several teardrop coupes that followed. The original owner was Ms. Beatrice Cartwright, heiress to the Standard Oil Company fortune. In 1938 she entered the car in the Nice Concours d'Elegance, winning the grand prix d'honneur in the coupe category. That same year she entered and won the Concours d'Elegance at Cannes. The Museum of Modern Art displayed this car in its 1951 exhibition titled 'Eight Automobiles,' showcasing the emerging art of aerodynamic styling. The car was treated to a restoration in 2000. Designated a 'Coupe Royal' by Figoni, this luxurious car was originally owned by Mrs. Beatrice Cartwright, a Standard Oil heiress and sometime wife of car enthusiast Freddy McEnvoy. It was recently the subject of a painstaking restoration and today remains one of the most authentic Talbot-Lagos of its kind.

Auction Sales Information

Event	Group
The Elegance at Hershey	European (1932-1941)
Ault Park Concours d'Elegance	Previous Best of Show Winners
Meadow Brook Concours d'Elegance	Best European Classic 1925-1942
Petersen Automotive Museum	French Curves: The Automobile as Sculpture

 

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