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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng - Very special

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Created on June 17, 2024

Text:

Paul Krüger

Photos:

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - the only Delahaye coachbuilt by Walter Köng

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - The air outlet in the fender is the sportiest detail of the otherwise restrained design language

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Flat windshield on an otherwise strongly rounded body

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - one-piece body at the transition to the pontoon era

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - looks much stockier in this picture due to the wide-angle lens and low viewpoint

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - front section with echoes of Jaguar

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - flat rear with tiny lights

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - With the top down, it looks a little rear-heavy

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - When the top is up, the rear passengers sit in the dark

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - herald of the modern era: body-colored bumpers

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Enselmble from headlights and indicators

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Emblem with reference to the "Générale Française Automobile"

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - The radiator grille with its horizontal ribs curves like a ribcage

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Marchal spotlights with the typical shield motif in the lens

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Nice coincidence: small Swiss cross in the turn signal from French production

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Plaque of the coachbuilder with a last touch of Art Déco

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Spoked wheels with Rudge center lock were standard

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - although declared as a four-seater, there is not much legroom in the back

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - although declared as a four-seater, there is not much legroom in the back

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - right-hand drive as a French luxury car once should have been

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - simple dashboard. The arrangement of instruments and switches was left to the coachbuilder

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - simple dashboard. The arrangement of instruments and switches was left to the coachbuilder

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Rev counter with oil pressure gauge and fuel gauge

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Top speed just barely recognizable: Around 160 km/h is possible

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Speedometer with integrated temperature gauges for engine oil and cooling water

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - lever of the Cotal gearbox with horizontally mirrored gearshift diagram

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - lever of the Cotal gearbox with horizontally mirrored gearshift diagram

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - tiny turn signal switch on a beater from boom

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - The door trim is just as plain as the rest of the interior. Map pocket with lid

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Folding seats with solid and at the same time filigree hinge

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Modern: Rear bench with individual seats and folding armrest

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Retaining cords and powder pockets as luxurious details

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Attention to detail: aluminum fitting as a step on the sill

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - metal door fittings surrounded by the patina of 78 years

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - 3.6-liter six-cylinder engine with 130 hp and a rather carelessly installed fuel hose

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - six-cylinder with three intake and six exhaust ports

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - Three Solex carburetors supply the six-cylinder engine with fuel

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Delahaye 135 MS Cabriolet Köng (1946) - the front one of the three Solex 40 PAI

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Delahaye 135 M (1948) - Chassis without bodywork

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Summary

Some special bodies are so ubiquitous that at some point you take them for granted. While the great French coachbuilders were shaping the Delahaye 135 almost non-stop, Walter Köng in Basel only built one single example between 1935 and 1989. This article is dedicated to the unique Swiss convertible and its technical basis.

This article contains the following chapters

The Type 135 in general
"M" for "modified"
Chassis 800391
One-off

Estimated reading time: 4min

Preview (beginning of the article)

Is it actually possible to write about a "special body" when there was no "standard body" for a car? Knowing full well that the majority of the wealthy clientele would not be satisfied with ready-made sheet metal, Delahaye did not offer a factory body for the Type 135. Anyone who spent almost 100,000 French francs on a car in the 1930s usually wanted it to look exactly as they wanted it. Although Delahaye's price lists also included cabriolets, coupés and saloons, their bodies also came either from Autobineau, Gilloré or Chapron. The Delahaye 135 was presented to the public at the Paris Motor Show in October 1935. After a merger with Rosengart and Chenard & Walcker for the low-cost construction of mid-range cars had not brought the desired success, the widow of company boss Léon Desmarais had decided to concentrate on luxury models. The first model of this new philosophy was the four-cylinder Delahaye 134 in 1933, on the basis of which the 135 with six cylinders was created under chief designer Jean François.

Welcome to Zwischengas!

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