19th Jun, 2025 10:00
Classic Cars
15
The original 'Delage 1' walnut steering wheel
45.7cm diameter
The history of 'Delage I' and this steering wheel starts in France in February 1925, when Delage debuted its new 6-litre hill climb car in the department of the Val-d'Oise, driven by Albert Divo. From 1925 to 1926 it was contested with Divo and the talented Robert Benoist at the wheel. However, after being stored throughout 1927, Delage closed the racing department and the cars were put on sale in their showroom on the Champs-Élysées.
In February 1928, Captain Alastair Miller purchased the car. The entry forms for the 1928 Brooklands Easter Meeting show that Miller labelled the 6-litre ex-hillclimber ‘Delage I’. For the remainder of 1928 and all of 1929, the car was a regular on the track - with Miller mostly at the wheel, but also Peter Clowes, Dudley Froy, Cyril Paul and Kaye Don - with the story of the Delage I at Brooklands eventually brought to a close in 1930.
In 1931, it was sold to Gerald Henry Maynard Denny in Ireland, finally crossing the Irish Sea in February 1932. This original wooden steering wheel was sent with the car, having been removed and replaced with a celluloid Bluemells spring wheel favoured by the Brooklands racers.
In April 1934, the car was sold on to Charles Manders from County Wicklow. The same year marked the last public appearance of Delage I in anything representing its original looks. Following an extensive fire at Phoenix Park, Dublin, it was fitted with a Hudson Engine with a 3-speed gearbox and sold as a rolling chassis to O’Brien’s Garage in County Offaly. In 1949, it was sold to Kevin McCann and, known as the Hudson Delage, it competed in a series of hill climbs and offroad trials. In 1952, it was towed to the local breaker's yard.
When Gerald Denny sold the Delage I, he kept this original steering wheel, and when he died in mid-1949, this steering wheel was retained by his wife until her death in 1996, when it was bequeathed to her nephew, who the current vendor purchased it from in 2010. Fitted with a TF & Co. (London) silver badge, commissioned by Gerald Denny in 1931 in the distinct shape and design of a BARC badge, it records the drivers of this historic car up to 1931, providing a connection to an earlier era of motor racing and the only surviving link to the characters associated with the French hill-climber.
Take advantage of our Sworders Delivery Service. Please see 'Shipping estimate' below.
Sold for £1,200
Condition Report
the wood and banding is intact with some marks and knocks, the plating of the spokes is showing signs of corrosion. mostly age related wear. the silver badge is in good coondition not showing many signs of aging.
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Auction: Classic Cars, 19th Jun, 2025
Please note: Lots 46-63 are subject to Buyer's Premium at 15% plus VAT @20%
Viewing
Stansted Viewing | Auction
Viewing will be held at our Stansted Auction Rooms, Cambridge Road, Stansted Mountfitchet CM24 8GE, as follows:
Friday 13 June, 10am - 4pm
Sunday 15 June, 10am - 1pm
Monday 16 June, 10am - 4pm
Tuesday 17 June, 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 18 June, 10am - 4pm
Thursday 19 June, 9am - 10am
The auction will take place at our Stansted Auction Rooms, Cambridge Road, Stansted Mountfitchet CM24 8GE.
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