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68-524: Charles-Henri Brasier worked briefly with Panhard and then for some years with Émile Mors before, at the age of 35, he set himself up as an automobile manufacturer on his own account. He did this in partnership with Georges Richard , the two of them establishing the Richard-Brasier business in 1902. By 1905, relations had broken down between the partners due to Richard being frequently away from his desk due to his motor racing activities and, it

136-648: A 200,000 French francs government prize. Dreyfus also scored a victory in the Ecurie Bleu Type 145 at Pau in 1938, using the model's fuel economy to beat the more powerful Mercedes-Benz W154 . Another Type 145 finished third in the same race. These victories combined with French patriotism ensured demand for Delahaye cars up until the German occupation of France during World War II . In early 1940, 100 Type 134N and Type 168 chassis were built and bodied by Renault as military cars under contract for

204-466: A 3-litre OHC-engined front-wheel drive car, described by one commentator as "Utopian", in 1928 An even larger model followed in 1930. In view of the severe economic downturn crystallised by the Wall Street Crash of October 1929 , the timing of this venture was unfortunate. The new large Chaigneau-Brasiers attracted plenty of interest at the annual Paris Motor Shows. A journalist described

272-532: A 4-cylinder 2,062 cc (12 CV/HP) engine, set on a wheelbase of only 3,100 mm (122.0 in). The currency had continued to lose value following the end of the war and this model was listed at 40,000 francs for a "Torpedo" bodied car and 45,000 francs for a "Conduite interieure" (two-box sedan/saloon/berline) version. By this time, however, the company's market-place presence was being progressively eaten into by other, more focused and forward thinking auto-makers. The cars made after 1926 are known under

340-505: A former hydraulic machinery plant owned by the Morane family. Charles Weiffenbach was made operations manager. The company initially produced three models at this location: the 1.4 litre single-cylinder Type 0, and the twin-cylinder Type 1  [ fr ] and Type 2. All three had bicycle-style tiller steering, rear-mounted water-cooled engines, automatic valves, surface carburetors , and trembler coil ignition ; drive

408-483: A major investment from Delahaye who were at this time still short of capacity themselves, and were able to transfer some truck production to the Chaigneau-Brasier plant. Chaigneau-Brasier were therefore able to survive, but only until 1930 or 1931. Sources differ. Léon Théry entered a Brasier in the 1908 French Grand Prix , but surrendered after 9 laps of the 10 lap race. Panhard Panhard

476-474: A new, higher quality, and considerably sportier automotive-chassis line, with an appealingly distinctive appearance, improved horsepower, better handling, and a higher price-point. Delahaye was repositioned to appeal to a wealthier, younger, more sporting oriented customer base. Varlet was instructed to establish both the new drawing office, and the racing department, neither of which Delahaye ever had before. Weiffenbach hired Jean François, as Varlet's assistant, and

544-774: A racing department in 1932, the company came to prominence in France in the mid-to-late 1930s, first with the International record-breaking Type 138; then, the Type 135 that famously evolved into the special short-wheelbase sports-racing Type 135CS; followed by the V12 types 145 and 155 racecars. Many races were won, and records set. The company faced setbacks due to the Second World War, and was taken over by amalgamation with arch competitor Hotchkiss in 1954. Both were absorbed by

612-514: A takeover of Delahaye by Hotchkiss, after which Hotchkiss promptly shut down Delahaye car production. By the end of 1954, after a brief period selling trucks with the Hotchkiss-Delahaye nameplate, the combined firm was itself taken over by Brandt . By 1956, the brands Delahaye, Delage, and Hotchkiss were no longer in use. From its incorporation, Delahaye remained a private, entirely family-owned company, until it closed its doors for

680-510: A year earlier. Publicity of the time indicated the "S" stood for "Voitures surbaissées" (cars having an "underslung" chassis, ) but, clearly captivated by the power of alliteration, added that "S" also indicated cars that were "...souples, supérieures, stables, spacieuses, silencieuses, sans soupapes (i.e., using valveless cylinders)...". Four of the five Panhards exhibited featured increasingly lavish and pricey 6-cylinder engined cars, their engine sizes ranging from 2.35-litres to 3.5-litres. There

748-523: The "Périphérique" motor-way ) on the southern edge of central Paris . Before World War I , several twin, four and six-cylinder models were offered. During this period the company was selling around 1,000 cars annually. Brasier was one of several companies to be contracted to produce the innovative Hispano-Suiza V8 aero engine for use in such scouts as the SPAD S.VII , S.E.5a and Sopwith Dolphin . However, Brasier engines were of such poor quality that

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816-573: The 134N , a 12 cv car with a 2.15-litre four-cylinder engine, and the 18cv Type 138 , powered by a 3.2-litre six-cylinder engine – both developed from their successful truck engines. In 1935, success in the Alpine Trial led to the introduction of the sporting Type 135 "Coupe des Alpes". By the end of 1935, Delahaye had won eighteen minor French sports car events and a number of hill-climbs , and came fifth at Le Mans . In 1936, Delahaye ran four 160 hp (120 kW; 160 PS) cars (based on

884-571: The 1896 Paris–Marseille–Paris race, Levassor was fatally injured due to a crash while trying to avoid hitting a dog, and died in Paris the following year. Arthur Krebs succeeded Levassor as General Manager in 1897, and held the job until 1916. He turned the Panhard et Levassor Company into one of the largest and most profitable manufacturers of automobiles before World War I . Panhards won numerous races from 1895 to 1903. Panhard et Levassor developed

952-620: The 1896 Paris–Marseille–Paris race, and the 1897 Paris–Dieppe race, followed in 1898 by the Marseilles–Nice rally, the Course de Périgeux, and the Paris–Amsterdam–Paris race. Delahaye's automotive company was incorporated in 1898 with investors George Morane – who had driven one of Delahaye's cars in the Marseilles–Nice rally – and Morane's brother-in-law Leon Desmarais. The company moved its manufacturing from Tours to Paris, to

1020-756: The Monte Carlo Rally driving a Delahaye. Delahaye also ran first and second at Le Mans . Against the German government-sponsored juggernauts Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union , Delahaye entered the Type 145 , powered by a complicated 4 + 1 ⁄ 2 -litre V12 . Called the "Million Franc Delahaye" after a victory in the Million Franc Race , the initial Type 145 was driven by René Dreyfus to an average speed 91.07 mph (146.56 km/h) over 200 km (120 mi) at Montlhéry in 1937, earning

1088-640: The Panhard rod , which came to be used in many other types of automobiles as well. From 1910 Panhard worked to develop engines without conventional valves, using under license the sleeve valve technology that had been patented by the American Charles Yale Knight . Between 1910 and 1924 the Panhard & Levassor catalogue listed plenty of models with conventional valve engines, but these were offered alongside cars powered by sleeve valve power units. Following various detailed improvements to

1156-555: The Place de la Concorde at the prestigious eastern end of the Champs-Élysées The smaller of these was a 4-cylinder 3,392 cc (18 CV/HP) engined car with a choice between two wheelbase lengths of either 3,300 mm (129.9 in) or 3,420 mm (134.6 in). The larger car was fitted with a 6-cylinder 5,325 cc (30 CV/HP) and sat on an impressive 3,650 mm (143.7 in) chassis. The cars were priced by

1224-427: The war . The new Panhard 16CV "Six" came with a 3445cc engine and sat on a 3,540 mm (139.4 in) wheelbase. At the show it was priced, in bare chassis form, at 58,000 francs. Of the nine models displayed for the 1927 model year, seven featured four-cylinder engines, ranging in capacity from 1480cc (10CV) to 4845cc (20CV), and in price from 31,000 francs to 75,000 francs (all in bare chassis form). Also on show

1292-669: The 10HP Panhard Type X19, which used a 4-cylinder 2,140 cc (131 cu in) engine. This was followed three months later by three more 4-cylinder models which will have been familiar to any customers whose memories pre-dated the war , but they now incorporated upgraded electrics and a number of other modifications. For the 15th Paris Motor Show , in October 1919, Panhard were displaying four models, all with four cylinder engines, as follows: By 1925, all Panhard's cars were powered by Knight sleeve valve engines that used steel sleeves . The steel sleeves were thinner and lighter than

1360-512: The 1894 Paris–Rouen Rally , Alfred Vacheron equipped his 4 hp (3 kW) Panhard with a steering wheel , believed to be one of the earliest employments of the principle. In 1891, the company built its first all-Levassor design, a "state of the art" model: the Système Panhard consisted of four wheels, a front-mounted engine with rear wheel drive , and a crude sliding-gear transmission, sold at 3500 franc s. (It would remain

1428-534: The 24BT being a version of the same with a longer wheelbase and space for four. For a period after the war, the Panhard-based Monopole racing cars received unofficial support from Panhard (as did DB and other clients such as Robert Chancel), using it to good effect in winning the "Index of Performance" class at Le Mans in 1950, 1951, and 1952. In 1953, Panhard moved on to a more direct involvement with Chancel, which however came to an end after

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1496-460: The 3-litre car of 1928 as sitting on "le châssis le plus moderne du salon [1928]" ("the most modern chassis at the 1928 Paris motor show") but it turned out that the car displayed was only a prototype, and it is not clear if any were actually produced for sale. The company fell into acute financial difficulties. With production capacity at the Ivry plant now badly under used, nemesis was postponed by

1564-616: The French army. The French government had ordered all private automobile production to cease in June 1939, but small numbers of cars continued to be built for the occupying German forces until at least 1942. In 1951, a French military team with Captain Monnier and Colonel Henri Debrus were part of the victorious crew that won the first Algiers-Cape Town Rally with a Delahaye pick-up. After World War II , French luxury car makers struggled under

1632-528: The French government. By 1904, about 850 automobiles had been built. The company introduced its first production four-cylinder in 1903 and shaft-drive transmissions in 1907. Delahaye's chief design-engineer Amédée Varlet invented and pioneered the V6 engine in the 1911 Type 44 . Varlet also designed the Delahaye Titan marine engine, an enormous cast-iron multi-valve twin-cam four-cylinder engine that

1700-500: The RFC's Quartermaster General, Brig.-Gen. Robert Brooke-Popham had to write: "When 1,170 [rpm] SE.5s are allotted, please issue any other 1,170 SE.5 in preference to a Brasier. Brasier engines will only be issued to squadrons when no other 1,170 is available." Following the outbreak of peace, production was resumed in 1919 with a 3404 cc model. By 1920 Brasier were displaying two models in their high-profile show room, not far from

1768-646: The Type 135) in the Ulster TT, placing second to Bugatti , and entered four at the Belgian 24 Hours, finishing 2-3-4-5 behind an Alfa Romeo . Delahaye was able to leverage their racing success to acquire automaker Delage in 1935. American heiress Lucy O'Reilly Schell paid the developmental costs for short "Competition Court" 2.70-metre-wheelbase Type 135 cars for rallying and racing. She purchased 12 of these, reserving half for her Ecurie Bleue amateur racing team. In 1937, René Le Bègue and Julio Quinlin won

1836-506: The Type 135, fitted with hydraulic instead of mechanical brakes, and a triple Solex carbureted version of the 3.6-litre Type 135 engine, which produced 152 hp (113 kW; 154 PS). This power was roughly equal to that of the previous series. Only 84 examples of the Type 235 were built. Delahaye's competitor, Hotchkiss , negotiated a licensing agreement with Kaiser-Willys Motors , and obtained sanction to manufacture its Willys MB 'Jeep' in France. The French army began to appreciate

1904-507: The axle. This device has been widely used on other automobiles or as an aftermarket upgrade to rear axles for vintage American cars. Panhard has supplied more than 18,000 military wheeled vehicles to over 50 countries with a range of combat vehicles weighing less than 10 tonnes, as follows: Delahaye Delahaye was a family-owned automobile manufacturing company , founded by Émile Delahaye in 1894 in Tours , France. Manufacturing

1972-470: The bodies and several other components out of aluminum. Thus the Dyna X and early Dyna Z series 1 had aluminum bodies. Unfortunately, cost calculations by Jean Panhard, the inheriting son and managing director of the firm, failed to account for the extra cost of aluminum vs steel. His calculations were made for the sheet metal panel area actually utilized per body shell, and did not account for the scrap of each of

2040-474: The cast iron ones that had been fitted in Panhard sleeve valve engines since 1910, and this already gave rise to an improved friction coefficient permitting engines to run at higher speeds. To reduce further the risk of engines jamming, the outer sleeves, which are less thermally stressed than the inner sleeves, were coated on their inner sides with an anti-friction material, employing a patented technique with which Panhard engineers had been working since 1923. This

2108-475: The civilian branch was absorbed by Citroën, and the marque was retired. From 1968 Panhard only made armored vehicles. In 2004, Panhard lost a competition to another manufacturer of military vehicles, Auverland , for the choice of the future PVP of the French Army. This allowed Auverland to purchase Panhard, then a subsidiary of PSA Peugeot Citroën , in 2005. However, the fame of Panhard being greater, it

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2176-414: The company for their entire working career. Weiffenbach became the operations manager in 1906, while Varlet focused on technical engineering and manufacturing advances. In 1932, 42-year-old Jean François was hired as chief design-engineer. Amadee Varlet was over eighty by then, and past his creative prime, but his earned respect caused him to be promoted to head up the new drawing office, and set up and manage

2244-434: The company kept no records of these events. The affair could not be effectively contained and resulted in disinterest among prospective buyers. The Type 175, 178 and 180 models were unable to generate enough sales to recover development and production costs. Their production was discontinued in mid-1951. Until early 1951, continuing demand from the French army for the company's light reconnaissance vehicles (VLR) enabled

2312-491: The company to operate. Small but steady demand for the Type 163  [ de ] trucks allowed the business to remain solvent. A one-ton capacity light truck (later sharing its 3.5-litre six-cylinder overhead-valve engine with the company's Type 235 luxury cars) made its debut at the 1949 Paris Motor Show as the Type 171 . During the next twelve months the Type 171 spawned several brake-bodied versions, including ambulance and 9-seater "familiale" variants. The vehicle

2380-477: The company was renamed Panhard (without "Levassor"), and produced light cars such as the Dyna X , Dyna Z , PL 17 , 24 CT and 24 BT . The company had long noted the weight advantages of aluminum, and this as well as postwar government steel rationing (designed to limit new car models to ensure an orderly return to production at the major firms), encouraged the firm to proceed with the expensive alternative of making

2448-448: The company's designer and chief engineer. Delahaye had escaped near disaster, to arise with virtually immediate success, in the new Type 134, followed almost immediately by the International speed record setting Type 138, and then the model that made Delahaye deservedly famous: the Type 135. In 1934, Delahaye set eighteen class records at Montlhéry, in a specially-prepared, stripped and streamlined 18 Sport. The company also introduced

2516-608: The deadly 1955 Le Mans . In the latter half of the 1950s and the early 1960s, the Deutsch Bonnet racers ("DB Panhard") picked up this mantle and went on to dominate the "Index of Performance" as well as other small-engine racing classes. The last Panhard passenger car was built in 1967. After assembling 2CV panel trucks for Citroën to utilize capacity during falling sales, and raising operating cash by selling ownership progressively to Citroën, respectively to its mother company Michelin (full control as of 1965), in autumn of 1967

2584-611: The depressed economy. General Pons's five-year reconstruction program (the Pons Plan) allocated the majority of its vehicles for export, and installed an increasingly punitive tax regime aimed at luxurious non-essential products, including cars with engines larger than two litres (120 cu in). In 1947, 88% of Delahaye production was exported, primarily to French colonies in Asia and Africa. Delahaye's meagre production of 573 cars in 1948 (compared to 34,164 by market-leader Citroën ),

2652-593: The large Brandt manufacturing organization, within months, with automotive products ended. Delahaye closed forever at the end of 1954, taking Delage along with it. Engineer Émile Delahaye began experimenting with belt-driven cars in 1894, while he was manager of the Brethon Foundry and Machine-works in Tours, France. These experiments encouraged him to acquire the foundry and machine-works, so that Monsieur Brethon could retire. Emile soon entered his automobiles in

2720-414: The last time, on December 31, 1954. Emile Delahaye, a successful Tours foundry and machine-works owner, built his first car in 1894. By 1898, the demand required that he expand facilities and obtain investment capital. Emile Delahaye agreed to partner equally with coppersmith business owners and brothers-in-law, Leon Desmarais and George Morane. The arrangement was duly incorporated in 1898, and car assembly

2788-509: The manufacturer respectively at 22,500 francs and 40,000 francs in bare chassis form, with tires included. In October 1924 the Brasier stand at the 19th Paris Motor Show was, as in earlier years, prominently positioned in the central part of the display area, but by now Henri Brasier had switched away from the very large cars he had produced in the immediate post-war years, and was offering the "Brasier Type TB4", launched in 1923 and powered by

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2856-553: The name of Chaigneau-Brasier , after the company was bought by the Chaigneau family who had been bicycle makers. The first car made by the new company was the TD-4, a 9 CV 4-cylinder model available as a tourer or saloon. The company appears to have sought a return to its "luxury car" strategy of ten years earlier, now combined with elements of technical innovation for which its traditional customers had not been prepared, introducing

2924-484: The new racing department, assisted by much younger engineer Jean François. Pierre Peigney, a family relative, was the president, but his was more a formal role, since it was Charles Weiffenbach who had been mandated by the partners to run the company, literally single-handedly. This he did, including after orchestrating the merger in 1954 with Hotchkiss, a prime competitor. President Peigney signed for Delahaye, and president Richard signed for Hotchkiss. Neither company had

2992-462: The simpler machine, available at a much lower price, and cancelled the contract for the more sophisticated Delahaye VLR. In August 1953, the company laid off more than 200 employees. A merger was discussed with Hotchkiss, which was facing similar problems. On 19 March 1954, an agreement was signed by Delahaye president Pierre Peigney and Hotchkiss president Paul Richard . Less than three months later, on 9 June, Delahaye shareholders accepted

3060-470: The sleeve valve engined Panhard 20HP. General Joffre himself used two 35HP Panhard Type X35s with massive 4-cylinder 7,360 cc (449 cu in) engines for his personal transport, and these were frequently to be seen by Parisians carrying military leaders between the front-line and the Élysée Palace . Following the return to peace in 1918, Panhard resumed passenger car production in March 1919 with

3128-554: The sleeve valve technology by Panhard's own engineering department, from 1924 till 1940 all Panhard cars used sleeve valve engines . Under the presidency of Raymond Poincaré , which ran from 1913 till 1920, Panhard & Levassor's 18CV and 20CV models were the official presidential cars. During the war Panhard, like other leading automobile producers, concentrated on war production, including large numbers of military trucks, V12-cylinder aero-engines, gun components, and large 75 and 105 diameter shells. The military were also keen on

3196-567: The stamping dies. The air-cooled flat-twin engine of the Dyna was used by Georges Irat for his "Voiture du Bled" (VdB) off-road vehicle, built in Morocco in small numbers in the early 1950s. Drawing inspiration from the Panhard Dynavia concept, the styling of the Dyna Z was distinctively smooth and rounded, with an emphasis on aerodynamics and an overall minimalist design. The 24CT was a later (from summer 1963 on) stylish 2+2 seater;

3264-486: The stampings making up the shell. Once in production, a re-examination showed a cost of 55,700fr for aluminum shells and only 15,600fr for steel. The use of aluminum had pushed the firm close to bankruptcy, and a hurried engineering job returned the firm to steel. Thus, the later Dyna Z (from mid September 1955) and the successor PL 17 bodies were steel, and the major stampings retained the heavier gauge intended for durability with aluminum, so as to avoid complete replacement of

3332-549: The standard until Cadillac introduced synchromesh in 1928.) This was to become the standard layout for automobiles for most of the next century. The same year, Panhard et Levassor shared their Daimler engine license with bicycle maker Armand Peugeot , who formed his own car company. In 1895, 1,205 cc (74 cu in) Panhard et Levassor vehicles finished first and second in the Paris–Bordeaux–Paris race, one piloted solo by Levassor, for 48¾hr. However, during

3400-401: The traditional American-built Jeep of the period. During 1953, the company built 1,847 VLRs, as well as 537 "special" military vehicles. In that year no more than 36 Delahaye or Delage-branded passenger cars were registered. In 1953, the Type 235 was introduced. Fernand Lecour, working with a small group of enthusiastic factory employees, convinced Weiffenbach to introduce an updated version of

3468-400: The war, Delahaye's major income was from manufacturing trucks. Following the war, Delahaye attempted, in 1927, to increase profits by adopting a modest form of assembly-line production, in a tripartite agreement with FAR Tractor Company and Chenard & Walcker automakers, and Rosengart, an entry-level manufacturer of small family cars. However, the range of vehicles undertaken to produce

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3536-417: Was a French motor vehicle manufacturer that began as one of the first makers of automobiles . It was a manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its final incarnation, now owned by Renault Trucks Defense , was formed by the acquisition of Panhard by Auverland in 2005, and then by Renault in 2012. In 2018 Renault Trucks Defense, ACMAT and Panhard combined under a single brand, Arquus . Panhard

3604-453: Was a combination of belt and chain, with three forward speeds and one reverse. Desmarais and Morane took control of the company when Émile Delahaye retired in 1901; Weiffenbach took over from them in 1906. The company ceased its participation in racing after Delahaye's death in 1905. Weiffenbach had no interest in racing, and focused on production of practical motorized automotive chassis, heavy commercial vehicles , and early firetrucks for

3672-455: Was also an 8-cylinder 5.1 L (310 cu in) Panhard Type X67 on display, with a generous 3,590 mm (141.3 in) wheelbase and listed, even in bare chassis form, at 85,000 francs. Panhard et Levassor's last pre-war car was the unusually styled monocoque Dynamic series, first introduced in 1936. Panhard et Levassor also produced railbuses, including some for the metre gauge Chemin de fer du Finistère . After World War II

3740-583: Was an example of the 8-cylinder 6350cc (35CV) "Huit" model which Panhard had offered since 1921 and which at the 1926 show was priced by the manufacturer in bare chassis form at 99,000 francs. When Panhard presented their 1931 line-up at the Paris Motor Show in October 1930, their last two four-cylinder models had been withdrawn, along with the 10CV six-cylinder Type X59. Instead they concentrated on their "S-series" cars, designated " Panhard CS " and "Panhard DS" according to engine size, and introduced

3808-457: Was composed of the shareholders, plus their appointed manager of operations, Charles Weiffenbach, as chief executive officer. Emile Delahaye had been the company's president, its sole engineer, and the administrator, until his retirement in 1901. In 1898, Delahaye hired Charles Weiffenbach as his managerial assistant; and, Amédée Varlet as the design-engineer. Both men were qualified mechanical engineers, with differing talents, and both stayed with

3876-455: Was decided to retain the name; the PVP designed by Auverland would bear a Panhard badge. In October 2012, Renault Trucks Defense , division of Swedish Volvo Group since 2001, finalized the acquisition of Panhard for 62.5 million euros. Today the only use of the name Panhard is in the Panhard rod (also called Panhard bar), a suspension link invented by Panhard that provides lateral location of

3944-400: Was delayed until 1948 due to the war, post-war shortages, and the death of its designer. With a license agreement in place and no viable alternatives, Delahaye proceeded with production of the Type 175. However, suspension components underwent catastrophic failure, and Delahaye was obliged to buy back a number of its vehicles to avoid litigation. The risk of negative publicity was so great that

4012-480: Was excessively extensive, too diverse, and totally devoid of practical standardization. The collaboration did not last long as shrinking sales volume threatened the company's survival. By 1931, the triumverate had disintegrated. It has been alleged that Weiffenbach met with his friend and competitor Ettore Bugatti , to seek his opinion on turning Delahaye around. In 1932, Desmarais's widow and majority shareholder, Madame Leon Desmarais, instructed Weiffenbach to develop

4080-415: Was finalised by Louise, who married Levassor in 1890. Daimler and Levassor became friends, and shared improvements with one another. These first vehicles set many modern standards, but each was a one-off design. They used a clutch pedal to operate a chain-driven gearbox . The vehicle also featured a front-mounted radiator . An 1895 Panhard et Levassor is credited with the first modern transmission . For

4148-524: Was fitted into purpose-built speedboat La Dubonnet , which briefly held the world speed record on water . German manufacturer Protos began licensed production of Delahaye models in 1907, while in 1909, H. M. Hobson began importing Delahaye vehicles to Britain. US manufacturer White pirated the Delahaye design; the First World War interrupted efforts to recover damages. By the end of

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4216-417: Was intended for use in France's African colonies, having large wheels and high ground clearance, and was also exported to Brazil. By 1952, thirty Type 171s were produced per month. Delahaye's last entirely new model, a 2-litre Jeep-like vehicle known as Delahaye VLR (Véhicule Léger de Reconnaissance Delahaye) was released in 1951. The French army believed that this vehicle offered a number of advantages over

4284-421: Was moved to Paris following incorporation in 1898 with two marriage-related brothers-in-law, George Morane and Leon Desmarais, as Emile Delahaye's equal partners. The company built a low volume line of limited production luxury cars with coachbuilt bodies; trucks; utility and commercial vehicles; buses; and fire-trucks. Delahaye made a number of technical innovations, particular in its early years. After establishing

4352-483: Was moved to the vacant Paris factory owned by the incoming partners. When Delahaye retired in 1901, from failing health, he sold his shares to his partners, with Desmarais purchasing more, thus gaining a majority. As the Desmarais and Morane families were connected by marriage, Delahaye was a family-owned business, from 1901 until its takeover by Hotchkiss in 1954. Delahaye was the minority partner. The board of directors

4420-427: Was one of several improvements applied by Panhard engineers to the basic Knight sleeve-valve engine concept. In 1925 a 4,800 cc (290 cu in) model set the world record for the fastest hour run, an average of 185.51 km/h (115.26 mph). A surprise appeared on the Panhard stand at the 20th Paris Motor Show in October 1926, in the shape of the manufacturer's first six-cylinder model since before

4488-566: Was originally called Panhard et Levassor , and was established as an automobile manufacturing concern by René Panhard , Émile Levassor , and Belgian lawyer Edouard Sarazin in 1887. Panhard et Levassor sold their first automobile in 1890, based on a Daimler engine license. Levassor obtained his licence from Paris lawyer Edouard Sarazin, a friend and representative of Gottlieb Daimler 's interests in France. Following Sarazin's 1887 death, Daimler commissioned Sarazin's widow Louise to carry on her late husband's agency. The Panhard et Levassor license

4556-533: Was reported, injuries he sustained as a result. The strained relations prompted Richard to leave the company that year to found Unic . The newly renamed Brasier firm was therefore born into an atmosphere of recrimination and litigation. Nevertheless, Brasier retained the premises originally acquired by the Richard-Brasier company in Ivry , just outside the ring formed by the old city walls (today followed by

4624-410: Was unsustainably low. The new face of the postwar Delahaye was styled in-house by industrial designer Philippe Charbonneaux . Production of the outdated pre-war Type 135 and 148L was resumed in 1946, to restart cash flow and because the Type 175 and its two longer-wheelbased versions were not ready for introduction. The Type 175 was very modern when it had been envisioned in 1938 but its production

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