Just Cool Cars: 1948 Delahaye was rescued from a shed
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — For decades, this 1948 Delahaye 135 M Cabriolet languished in a shed outside Paris.
But when we saw it in August, David Disiere of Southlake, Texas, had brought the car back to original shape, making it one of the most exquisite cars of its period that are still around.
He told us at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance that he heard about the car on the auction circuit, purchased it last year and brought it to the U.S. Restorers went to work, finishing the car only a week before it went on display.
"This was the actual car that appeared on the Paris Motor Show Delahaye stand in 1948," Disiere says. "It's so special."
The official history of the car prepared for the Pebble Beach show says it was one of six with a body by coachbuilder Faget-Varnet and that it had, among other things, a distinctive radiator grille.
We just know that it's beautiful, an amazing piece of post-war automotive history.