Rare Rides to Be Showcased at U.K.’s Salon Privé Concours d’Elégance
A 1937 Delahaye 145 and 1957 Ferrari 500 TRC are among 50 vehicles competing for ‘Best of Show,’ Sept. 5-8.
Among the 50 exceptional and rare motor cars battling for the prestigious “Best of Show” prize at the annual Salon Privé Concours d’Elégance by Chubb Insurance will be a pair of significant competition cars: a celebrated 1937 Delahaye 145 and a 1957 Ferrari 500 TRC. Salon Privé Concours d’Elégance happens September 5 to 8, 2019, at Blenheim Palace in Blenheim, Oxfordshire, England.
The Delahaye featured at Salon Privé is the remarkable “Million-Franc” 145, the first of four 4.5-liter V12 race cars built for the Écurie Bleue Racing Team owned by Americans Laury and Lucy Schell.
After months of tuning, one of the Schell Delahaye Type 145’s competed in the French government’s 1937 automotive engineering challenge, the Million Franc Prize. On August 27, 1937, legendary driver René Dreyfus drove one of Schell’s Type 145’s for 200 kilometers (about 124 miles) in a record one hour, 21 minutes, and 49.5 seconds. Travelling at an average speed of 91.3 miles per hour on the banked Montlhery motor circuit south of Paris, France, the vehicle had won the Prix du Million. The one million franc prize was offered by the French Government to encourage French motor car manufacturers to beat the Germans, who were then dominating motor racing.
The Delahaye then competed in the Grand Prix de Pau in 1938 with a first-place finish, beating the Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrows. This victory was repeated at the Grand Prix de Cork, followed by the Mille Miglia with a fourth-place finish. World War II then engulfed Europe and racing stopped. Post-war, this significant Delahaye traded hands and lost part of its original body. For awhile, its identity was difficult to establish. Careful research, though, revealed its true history as the ex-René Dreyfus Montlhery record-breaker.
Another important competition racer at Salon Privé 2019 is the stunning Ferrari 500 TRC. The vehicle is acknowledged as one of the most beautiful racing cars ever built by Ferrari. It was the successor to the two-liter racing 500 TR of 1956, in its turn successor to the Mondial.
Only 19 Lampredi-engined 500 TRC models were built, all for privateers. The car presented at Salon Privé is the very last one. Chassis 0708MDTR was originally finished in red from the factory and sent to John Von Neumann in September 1957. Von Neumann was the first Ferrari dealer in California. He painted all of his cars silver (argento with a red stripe), the racing color of Germany, with the red stripe being an homage to Ferrari. Chassis 0708MTDR did not actually find its first owner until August 1958. Jack Nethercult of Sylmar, California, bought the car at that time for $11,232 plus tax.
While it missed most of the 1958 competition season, 0708MDTR made up for lost time. In 1959, it competed in at least 13 races up and down the West Coast, with success. This Ferrari racer is today, without question, one of the best 500 TRCs in the world.
“We are delighted and very excited to include these notable competition cars of their day,” said Andrew Bagley, Salon Privé’s Concours Chairman. “The inclusion of these important Delahaye and Ferrari models highlight the global reputation and status of our spectacular and exclusive Salon Privé Concours celebrations at Blenheim Palace.”
Photos: Salon Privé Concours d’Elégance