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Die-cast: CMC’s 1937-39 Talbot Lago Coupe T150C-SS

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Gorgeous ‘teardrop’ Talbot Lago Coupe  a classic … 

CMC Talbot Lago Coupe
This Talbot Lago coupe is a sterling example of 1930’s Art Deco design.

About a year ago I was lucky enough to tour the Petersen Auto Museum in Los Angeles and even luckier, they had an incredible display of streamlined and art deco era cars on display.

Part of the display was the swoopy teardrop-shaped Talbot Lago T150C-SS coupe with its beautifully shaped body, metal sunroof (unheard of in the day) and rear-opening doors.  This was automotive beauty at its finest 1930s best.

Happily CMC recognized the Talbot Lago’s beauty and was hard at work recreating the coupe in its standard 1/18 scale and in museum quality detail in a delicious cool light metallic blue paint scheme.

The History

Automobiles Talbot came into existence in 1922, but really had been around since 1896. That’s when Alexandre Darracq launched an auto manufacturing firm using his name and the cars were successful racers at the time. He sold the firm in 1912 and  it was 1922 that the Talbot name emerged.

CMC Talbot Lago Coupe
Everything opens on this museum-quality piece.

This fascinating teardrop shaped coupe was born amid financial woes during the Depression. Antonio Lago had been named Talbot’s managing director in 1932 and in 1936 he oversaw a management buyout of the struggling firm. Noted coachbuilder Fioni & Falaschi, created the T150C-SS coupe that debuted at the Paris Motor Show in 1937. Continue reading Die-cast: CMC’s 1937-39 Talbot Lago Coupe T150C-SS →

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Die-cast: Automodello’s 1937 Delage D8-120 S

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Automodello's 1937 Delage

1937 Delage a near perfect one-off …

Today, rich folks will plunk out a half a million bucks for a new Ferrari or Lamborghini and think they have something special, unique. Yet hundreds are made of such models.

Consider the rich folks of the 1930s who selected a fine chassis and drivetrain from a high-end manufacturer, like France’s Delage, and then commissioned a coachmaker to build a one-off body, just for their chassis. Ah, now that’s exclusivity.

That’s exactly what happened in 1937 when a Delage D8-120 S chassis was built and delivered to coachbuilder Pourtout that created a hand-formed aluminum body for the car. And what a body it was!

Now Automodello recreates a 1/24 scale cast resin version of this streamlined beauty. It’s a knockout!

The HistoryAutomodello's 1937 Delage

The Delage D8-120 S Aerodynamic Coupe is fantastic is a true one-off designed by famed stylist Georges Paulin. Records show the body alone cost $18,000 to build, roughly $300,000 in today’s coin.

The car was first shown at the Paris Auto Show in 1937 and Louis Delage, the carmaker’s owner, drove the car for three years before it was sold. Delage had always believed in proving his car’s mettle by racing them, one even winning the 1914 Indianapolis 500. So performance was important to him. Continue reading Die-cast: Automodello’s 1937 Delage D8-120 S →

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Die-cast: CMC 1938 Bugatti 57SC Corsica

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CMC’s Bugatti Corsica a work of artbug1

Bugatti has always been a brand for the upper echelon buyers, folks who want the best, the most beautiful and who value quality and uniqueness as much as performance.

No wonder that CMC has chosen a 1938 Bugatti as its latest 1:18-scale work of art.

In 1938 Bugatti created one of its most rare cars, the Bugatti 57 SC Corsica Roadster. The 57 SC chassis and engine was all Bugatti, but its flowing body was a combined effort designed by Jean Bugatti along with Eric Giles. Giles was designing the car for his brother, British Col. G.M. Giles, later chairman of the Bugatti Owners Club. This was back in the day when the wealthy could basically design their own coachwork to be installed exclusively on a manufacturer’s chassis.

cmc-ProduktfotoCoachbuilder Corsica, of North London, constructed the car’s sensuous body with its large sweeping pontoon fenders and long lean arrow-like hood. Alligator, then a popular luxury hide, was used for the interior.
Now owned by Californian John Mozart, the car won Best of Show at the 1998 Pebble Beach Concours. There’s no denying this is a beautiful car, well restored.

Continue reading Die-cast: CMC 1938 Bugatti 57SC Corsica →