the Paris Auto Salon, in October 1946. The new model would have been state-of-the-art modern, had it debuted in 1939. It was less so, eight years later, yet, it was one of the few new lines there. After the war, the Types 135 and 148L had to be re-introduced, to generate cashflow. The company's Delage D6-70 model continued as it was before the war, but the straight-eight engined Delage D8-120 was discontinued. Delahaye's directors could not allow its large displacement Delage to compete against the Types 175, 178 and 180. The Type 175 had a naturally aspirated, 4.5-litre, overhead-valve, inline six-cylinder engine, with seven rather than four main bearings, and a twelve port cylinder head instead of nine Ports. The chassis featured Dubonnet independent front suspension built under license; an independent De Dion rear suspension system; large diameter, deeply finned drums on a dual Lockheed hydraulic brake system; a four-speed, semi-automatic Cotal transmission manufactured by MAAG; left-hand drive for the first time by Delahaye; and eighteen inch wheels. The chassis, with its cockpit floor welded as a stressed structural member, on the bottom, rather than on top of the chassis, had exceptional strength and torsional rigidity. Developmental evolution was set back by the unexpected death of chief design-engineer Jean Francois, in April 1944. Delahaye had nobody qualified to assume his role. His absence resulted in extended delays (DELAHAYE Le Grand Livre by Jacque Dorizon and co-authors), causing Delahaye to resort to trial-and-error experimentation while still building somewhat outdated pre-war designs to generate revenue. Six pre-production chassis became known about by 1946, to the specifically involved factory-workers; senior management; the directors; and, a few with insiders' knowledge. For specific identification during the sequential evolution, and testing processes, five of the six were referred to by painted identity numbers: 90001; 91001; 91002; 92001, and 92002. The other was not numbered, being the distinctive Paris Auto Salon show chassis, that was incompletely assembled, to represent the optional Type 175S. The first three numbers referred to Type 175 units, and the latter two, prefixed '920' represented the Type 178. There was no precursor to the Type 180. The six were built sequentially and were not precisely replicated. Each had alterations made for improved manufacturing and profitability. The unique entity the directors approved in March 1944, predated the six pre-production units by about two years. That time was required for experiments and testing, from September