History of Car Sports

History of Car Sports

Early in the automobile era, there was an almost fundamental relation between races, incorporation of new makes and technical progress. In the nineteen-twenties and the nineteen-thirties, some producers had cars with racing genes in their range.

Mercedes took one of the first steps in this hunt for fame with its S series with compressor. The S, SS and SSK series were designed as prestigious pieces and were produced in small lots. Across the border, in Alsace, the fantastic Bugatti type 35 appeared in 1924, a make, which would dominate car sports for the next ten years as nobody, had ever done before. The 35 model was an excellent victory machine but also a real aesthetic masterpiece, which became the best selling racing car, with 390 produced!

Another example is the “fastest lorry in the world” as named by Ettore Bugatti. The 4.5l Bentley model got this nickname because of the origin of the make, which produced locomotives before switching to cars. The English super-power model also equipped with a compressor won five races from six participations in the years between 1924 and 1930.

In Italy, it was the turn of Alfa Romeo to produce a car competitive on the sports scene and it gave a breath of fresh air to the make. This task was excellently fulfilled by the 8C 2300 model, which won the Le Mans and Mille Miglia races. The Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 Berlinetta coupe from 1938 with the Touring body evokes the feel of speed due to its aerodynamic body. This profile allows it to also exceed 200 km/h (124 mph).

These were prestigious races where the Delahaye 135 in its car sports version did equally as well as at the Monte-Carlo rally and Grand Prix! The chassis of the 135 model was good both in races and on the road. This unbelievable car won everything, from the Monte-Carlo rally to the 24-hour Le Mans. The road car has a four-spoke steering wheel whereas the car sports version has a three-spoke steering wheel.