Old cars in traffic
06/30/2022
In the early sixties, "auto motor und sport" published driving reports under the title "Old cars on the road". In issue 4/1961, it was the turn of a Delahaye 135 M, a true classic from today's point of view and a used car at the time at just nine years old.
The editor was allowed to test drive the sprightly old car, one of only 16 examples of this type (?) still in existence, for a few hours. It was clear that a few things stood out:
"Axially movable windshield wipers, which can be folded all the way down when not in use so as not to obstruct the field of vision; central power switch, which actually de-energizes all power consumers; manual ignition adjustment; a well-sprung steering wheel; laminated glass windshield; manual dimming; charging current meter; glare-free adjustable interior rear-view mirror, headlight flasher and many other clever things ...".
Yes, the Beetle, Taunus and the like couldn't keep up, even a Porsche 356 probably couldn't. Even for a non-stop journey from Barcelona to Hamburg in 31 hours, thanks in part to its 102-liter fuel tank, the Delahaye was probably more comfortable in 1961 than many modern everyday cars of the 1960s ...
You can read the full report in ams issue 4/1961 .
