Photo: Gooding & Company
Talbot was a French car company that put its mark on automobile history, even though it was not as lucky as Bugatti to survive until today. But even so, Talbot left to posterity some of the most beautiful cars ever made, like this 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C-SS Teardrop Coupe. Valued at more than $10 million, it’s heading to the Amelia Island auction event on March 4.
Antonio Franco Lago seized the opportunity in 1933 to buy the near-bankrupt Automobiles Talbot-Darracq S.A., at the time a subsidiary of the British conglomerate Sunbeam-Talbot-Darracq. Lago went to revive the historic marque and in 1934 debuted a sensational new prototype at Paris Motor Show. The Talbot-Lago T150 Grand Sport caught people’s imagination, especially as Lago staged memorable promotional events for his new model.
It wasn’t long before Lago decided to go racing, and so the Talbot-Lago T150 C competition cars were created in 1936. The same year, at the Paris Motor Show, Lago unveiled the ultimate sporting chassis, known today as the T150-C-SS. Powered by a new 4-liter 140-horsepower engine with three carburetors, the new model looked almost identical to the company’s competition cars. The T150-C-SS was intended for custom coachwork and as such, it was mainly sold as a bare chassis.
With a list price of 78,000 francs, the T150-C-SS was a direct competitor to the likes of the Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 and Bugatti Type 57S. A very limited number of T150-C-SS chassis were built between 1937 and 1938, with bodies worked by a variety of coachbuilders. The most spectacular examples were bodies built by the legendary carrosserie Figoni et Falaschi. Referred to by the coachbuilder as a faux cabriolet, the design is now universally known as the Goutte d’Eau, or Teardrop.
Figoni et Falaschi built between 10 and 12 Teardrop Coupes on Talbot-Lago T150-C-SS, and the example on auction at Gooding & Company’s auction event in Amelia Island is one of them. The chassis no. 90107 is considered the most extreme variation of the Modèle New York design which features all-aluminum construction and fully enveloping, skirted front fenders. Only two bodies of this type were built and this is the only one that survived with its coachwork intact.
As you’d expect, the car is no stranger to concours lawn, starting with the 1938 Concours d’Elegance Fémina in Paris. Closer to our times, the Talbot-Lago was awarded Best in Class at the 2005 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and later Best of Show at the 2007 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. This week's auction in Amelia Island is the first time the car is presented for sale since 1950. It is estimated to fetch more than $10 million when it crosses the block on March 4.
It wasn’t long before Lago decided to go racing, and so the Talbot-Lago T150 C competition cars were created in 1936. The same year, at the Paris Motor Show, Lago unveiled the ultimate sporting chassis, known today as the T150-C-SS. Powered by a new 4-liter 140-horsepower engine with three carburetors, the new model looked almost identical to the company’s competition cars. The T150-C-SS was intended for custom coachwork and as such, it was mainly sold as a bare chassis.
With a list price of 78,000 francs, the T150-C-SS was a direct competitor to the likes of the Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 and Bugatti Type 57S. A very limited number of T150-C-SS chassis were built between 1937 and 1938, with bodies worked by a variety of coachbuilders. The most spectacular examples were bodies built by the legendary carrosserie Figoni et Falaschi. Referred to by the coachbuilder as a faux cabriolet, the design is now universally known as the Goutte d’Eau, or Teardrop.
Figoni et Falaschi built between 10 and 12 Teardrop Coupes on Talbot-Lago T150-C-SS, and the example on auction at Gooding & Company’s auction event in Amelia Island is one of them. The chassis no. 90107 is considered the most extreme variation of the Modèle New York design which features all-aluminum construction and fully enveloping, skirted front fenders. Only two bodies of this type were built and this is the only one that survived with its coachwork intact.
As you’d expect, the car is no stranger to concours lawn, starting with the 1938 Concours d’Elegance Fémina in Paris. Closer to our times, the Talbot-Lago was awarded Best in Class at the 2005 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and later Best of Show at the 2007 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. This week's auction in Amelia Island is the first time the car is presented for sale since 1950. It is estimated to fetch more than $10 million when it crosses the block on March 4.
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