Fascinated by France’s burgeoning automobile industry, the world’s first, Louis Delage moved to Paris as a young man and established himself as a consulting engineer. After a stint at Peugeot he founded Delage & Cie. at Levallois, a northwestern suburb of Paris. The first two prototype Delage automobiles were single-cylinder cars with de Dion engines.

Delage’s first six-cylinder car came in 1912, with a 2.5-liter engine designed by engineer Arthur-Léon Michelat and built in-house. In 1925, Maurice Gaultier was made chief engineer at Delage. His first all-new design was the DR of 1927. It used an L-head six-cylinder engine with a Ricardo-type cylinder head, which came in two displacements: 2,170 cc and 2,516 cc. The DR proved very reliable and became Delage’s second-best seller ever.

While no documentation of its history has yet been received, this Delage DR 70 is believed to have been imported new to Australia as a chassis in 1930 and was bodied by James Flood Pty., Ltd. of Melbourne. Original owner Claude Vanderkelen reportedly used the car until 1938. After passing through two other Australian owners, it was acquired in the 1960s by enthusiast Ian de Beuzeville, who used it daily for a few years before undertaking a complete restoration. When completed, it competed in numerous events. Imported to the UK around 2004, it joined a Spanish collection in 2007. Today it is part of a large Midwestern collection.

Although the restoration shows its age, the car is handsome and eager. The green leather upholstery is very intact, and the engine compartment is clean though not detailed. It is ready to be enjoyed as is or to serve as the solid and authentic basis for a full restoration.