Talbot-Lago T14 America - French-German swan song with charm

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Talbot-Lago T14 America - French-German swan song with charm

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Created on January 23, 2022

Text:

Bruno von Rotz

Photos:

Daniel Reinhard

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Bruno von Rotz

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - visually, there are only minor differences between the three generations with Talbot, BMW and Simca engines

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - more expensive than any Porsche sports car at the time, but still cheaper than a 300 SL or a 507

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - French Grandtourisme in motion

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - one of 12 left-hand drive models

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - relatively protruding rear end with indicated fins

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - pretty appearance

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - kept relatively flat at 133 cm

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - 164 cm wide

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - compact - length 4.20 cm, wheelbase 250 cm

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - View of the bright interior

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - classic steering wheel, crank window

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - the instruments come from BMW/VDO, top speed 160 miles per hour

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - red zone from around 5750 rpm

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - it's probably worth studying the instructions before operating the buttons

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - View of the pedals

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - the BMW V8 fits well into the engine compartment of the compact sports car

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - the BMW V8 engine was lighter than the previous four-cylinder engine

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - longitudinally mounted BMW V8 with 2.5 liters displacement and 125 hp

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - one of the last examples built, delivered in December 1958

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Talbot-Lago T14 America (1958) - spacious trunk

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Talbot-Lago Baby (1950) - the four-cylinder engine that was later also used for the T14 Coupé

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Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport (1958) - with factory bodywork, at the Paris Motor Show

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1955) - even a sports car has to refuel once in a while

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1955) - still without sliding window

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1955) - Coupé without sliding window

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1956 with sliding windows

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - during test drives in Monthléry in October 1956

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - during test drives in Monthléry in 1956

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - during construction

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - during construction, view of the door construction

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - under construction, view of the interior

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - during construction, view of the interior, the early examples were all right-hand drive

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - during construction

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - during construction, view of the installed four-cylinder engine

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Talbot-Lago Sport 2500 (1956) - the cars entered for Le Mans 1956 with Maserati 2.5-liter engines did not finish the race

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 (1956) - elegant coupé with four-cylinder engine

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Talbot-Lago T14 America 2 Litre 500 (1957) - at the press launch in September 1957

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Talbot-Lago T14 America 2 Litre 500 (1957) - with ZF four-speed gearbox and BMW engine

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Talbot-Lago T14 2 Litre 500 14 CV (1957) - with BMW V8 and side sliding windows

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Talbot-Lago T14 America 2 Litre 500 (1957) - with BMW V8 engine and crank windows

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Talbot-Lago T14 America 2 Litre 300 (1960) - last appearance at the 1960 Paris Motor Show, with Simca Vedette engine

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Talbot Lago America Coupé (1957) - at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este 2014

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Talbot Lago America Coupé (1957) - at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este 2014

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Talbot Lago T14 America (1957) - with BMW V8 engine unfortunately too expensive at the time - Classic-Gala Schwetzingen 2020

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Talbot Lago T14 America (1957) - elegant interior - Classic-Gala Schwetzingen 2020

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Talbot Lago T14 America (1957) - 125 hp at 5000 rpm, enough for 200 km/h - Classic-Gala Schwetzingen 2020

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Talbot Lago T14 America (1957) - naturally with painted wire wheels - Classic-Gala Schwetzingen 2020

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Talbot-Lago Coupé America from 1962 on the Peugeot stand - Rétromobile Paris 2018

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Summary

A V8 engine with 125 (up to 180 hp), a compact body made of sheet steel and plastic elements, an elegant coupé line and a kerb weight of just under 1000 kg - this actually sounds like a promising recipe, especially if we imagine the second half of the 1950s. But the Talbot-Lago T14 America was very expensive and the brand was almost at its end. Customers did not bite, and so only 14 examples of the attractive GT sports car were produced. This vehicle report tells the story of the last Talbot-Lago model and shows it in current and historical images as well as sales and press material.

This article contains the following chapters

Shrunken Grand Sport
Not good enough?
A look at America
Short intermezzo
One of 14

Estimated reading time: 9min

Preview (beginning of the article)

The good times were long gone for Talbot owner Tony Lago when he presented a new compact coupé at the 1955 Motor Show in May. With its stately coupés and cabriolets, powered by a six-cylinder engine with racing charisma and dressed by the world's best coachbuilders, Talbot-Lago vehicles had left their mark on post-war motor shows. But in the mid-fifties, many sports and gentlemen drivers wanted more compact and practical cars, such as those offered by Ferrari, Maserati or Aston Martin. Tony Lago did not want to be left behind and presented the Talbot-Lago 2 Litre 500. From the outside, the new car looked like a shrunken version of the Talbot Lago Grand Sport factory coupé, the shape of which was the work of Carlo Delaisse, who worked for coachbuilder Letourneur.

Welcome to Zwischengas!

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