1911 Delahaye Type 413A

Delahaye built its first automobile in 1895 and was initially based in Tours until moving to Paris in 1906. Along with automobiles, they also produced commercial vehicles. The early cars were designed by Emile Delahaye. Charles Weiffenbach and Amédée Varlet were brought on board in the late 1890s, and both were graduate mechanical engineers. They would remain with the company their entire working careers. Emile retired and left the company in 1901 and passed away soon after, in 1905.

Amédée Varlet was the company's design engineer, and among his patented designs were the twin-cam multi-valve engine and the V6 configuration. Varlet would serve in this role until the age of 76 when he took over the Drawing Office, and Jean Francois was hired in 1934 as a chief design engineer. Weiffenbach had been appointed Manager of Operations in the early 1900s and assumed control over the entire Delahaye operations in 1906.

During the early 1900s, the company built single- and twin-cylinder models. Their first four-cylinder car was the Type 11, introduced in 1903. By the start of The Great War, Delahaye had built a reputation for reliability and quality and was among the top ten of French carmakers. During the war, they manufactured military trucks, parts for Hispano-Suiza aero engines, and FN rifles.

After the War, Delahaye resumed production using a similar assembly line production that Ford had championed. The company would survive the Second World War, but by this time, it was in financial difficulty. By August of 1953, the company was forced to lay off more than 200 employees. Delahaye was later absorbed by Hotchkiss, who later terminated Delahaye's production. By 1955, Delahaye and Hotchikiss were both out of business.

by Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2019