1949 Talbot Lago T26 Record Cabriolet

For sale by auction on Saturday 08 March 2014 with Historics at Brooklands. Brooklands Motor Racing Circuit. Weybridge. Surrey. Call 01753 639170
Adolphe Clement had realised early on that exporting his
vehicles. particularly to the more affluent and therefore more
lucrative UK market. would help ensure his company's success - and
so he soon became associated with the Earl of Shrewsbury &
Talbot. The Earl set up an assembly plant in London in 1904. and
the imported cars were naturally enough called 'Clement-Talbots'.
The cars would prove successful and. in 1912. their reputation was
bolstered by Percy Lambert who would become the first ever driver
to achieve 100 miles-in-an-hour at Brooklands.
In 1919 the Earl of Shrewsbury sold his business to Darracq. an
English owned company building its cars at Suresnes. who then went
on to form the first major international alliance when they merged
with Sunbeam and set up the S-T-D (Sunbeam-Talbot-Darracq) combine
in 1920.
Anthony Lago. a Major in the Italian Air Force in the First World
War. fell out with Mussolini's Fascists and moved to London in the
early 1920s becoming the agent for IsottaFraschini. In 1935 when
STD failed. with financial backing from London. he bought Suresnes
from under the noses of the Rootes brothers.
Lago was an excellent engineer and set about rationalising and
restyling the range of six-cylinder cars and developed the existing
six-cylinder engine into a high-performance four-litre one. The
T150 variant was initially based on the three litre and was
increased to four litres in 1936. The special sports racing version
proved successful in competitions taking the first three places at
the 1937 Montlhery Sports Car Grand Prix and the Tourist Trophy
race at Donington Park.

Figoni provided styling input for the 'works' bodies from 1934
onwards. as well as building bodies to order on bare chassis such
as the famous 'Teardrop' T150's. Lago continued to refine the
wonderful four litre engine and. in 1938. for competition. the size
was increased to 4. 5 litres; racing successes for the Lago Special
would continue with a win in that year's Paris 12 hour race. The
Great War then intervened and afterwards Talbot-Lago resumed car
manufacture. releasing a totally new 4. 5 litre. six cylinder car. br/>the T26 Record in 1947.

The Talbot Lago Record T26 was a large car with a fiscal
horsepower of 26CV and a claimed actual power output of 170bhp
delivered to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual gear box with
the option. at extra cost. of a Wilson pre-selector gearbox and
supporting a claimed top speed of 105 mph. It was commonly sold as
a stylish four-door sedan but a. now very rare. two-door cabriolet
was also offered. Its 'T26' designation had been used before for
the 4½-litre GP racers in the late 1930s and referred to the car's
taxation rating of 26CV.

The example offered here has Talbot Lago's own undeniably
handsome cabriolet body with its 4½ litre engine and hugely elegant
coachwork. A proven chassis and running gear coupled to an
under-stressed and long-legged engine made these very desirable
cars in their day and they still offer an extremely attractive
package if one is looking for a car to enjoy on the many
international rallies available today.

The factory build sheets show that it was first owned by a
Mr. Galluzia in the USA and as he bought the car there. it is
probable that it was supplied there new. The car was then bought
from a dealer in part-restored condition. having previously formed
part of the collection belonging to the late Ed (Edgar Allen)
Morgan. Ed Morgan had acquired the T26. in poor condition. in about
1980. His son recalled that it had been caught up in a divorce
dispute and left in the garage at the marital home. It is therefore
reasonable to assume that the car was taken off the road in the
late 1960s or early 1970s. Ed Morgan's son was able to provide many
photographs of the restoration which the current vendor
subsequently completed to the same very high standard.
The factory records show this to be matching numbers car. br/>identical in configuration to the car that left the factory. except
for one significant aspect. It has undergone a comprehensively
painstaking restoration including. first and foremost. a full bare
chassis rebuild over a number of years. This was stripped to the
bare frame. shot blasted and painted on-site immediately after
blasting. It was then built up with all components stripped. br/>checked and rebuilt as necessary. The rear springs have been
dismantled. stripped and rebuilt with all bushes replaced by
'Silentbloc' parts. The front springs and wishbones were then
blasted and powder coated with a satin finish. New front shock
absorbers were installed and the steering box stripped and rebuilt
with new top bearings. new outer column and new track-rods. The
king-pin.

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