1937 Delahaye 145 Grand Prix Gallery

Covered in crude aluminum bodywork and supported by a chassis similar to the 135 S, the V12 project was completed in a year and raced a few times before its high speed test.

In what became the performance of his life, Rene Dreyfus set the fastest average speed of 146.6 kph at Montlhery in this car and won all of France’s accolades. After his record run, Bugatti was present and had four days to beat his time. During this tense period, Dreyfus sat on his record, but decided a final run was needed in case Bugatti had a trick up their sleeve. At the same time, both Dreyfus and Jean-Pierre Wimille took to the track. While the Bugatti dropped out with piston troubles, Dreyfus bested his time and became a national hero. He later described it as the ”toughest fight of my career”.

Learn about the 1937 Delahaye 145 Grand Prix