A 1937 Delage reaches $5.78 million at auction
The D8-120 S Pourtout Aérosport, originally commissioned by founder Louis Delage himself, becomes the most expensive example of the marque ever sold, breaking its own record by nearly two million dollars.
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The 1937 Delage D8-120 S Pourtout Aérosport crossed the block at RM Sotheby’s Monterey sale on 14 August, hammering for $5.78 million. The result resets the benchmark for the coachbuilding house, surpassing the previous high of $3.74 million achieved by a 1933 D8 S Roadster in 2007.
What makes this particular motorcar exceptional is its original ownership. Louis Delage himself commissioned the machine and drove it, embedding a founder’s hand in every choice from conception through daily use. The car carries the signature of two masters of French automotive design: Georges Paulin penned the aerodynamic lines that define its silhouette, whilst Marcel Pourtout, the legendary coachbuilder, shaped them in metal by hand. The body flows with the languid geometry of Art Deco, each curve purposeful, each surface catching light like polished silver.
Beneath the sculpted bodywork sits a 4.75-litre straight eight engine, the mechanical heart that delivered the performance to match the promise of those aerodynamic forms. The interior speaks of another era of craftsmanship: deep blue leather wraps the seats in horizontal pleating, a dark steering wheel sits ready, instruments arrayed across the dashboard with mechanical clarity. The proportions of the cabin recall a time when drivers sat upright, engaged with the road, not isolated from it.
The Delage claimed Best of Show at Pebble Beach in 2005, a recognition that this particular example stands among the finest expressions of pre war French automotive elegance. Its journey from Louis Delage’s garage to the auction block certifies it not merely as a survivor of nearly nine decades, but as a rolling monument to the ambition and artistry of coachbuilding at its zenith.
Imagery courtesy of Delage (@delageofficiel).
