This $13.4 Million Talbot-Lago Is Now the Most Expensive French Car Ever Sold at Auction

The car world was expecting big things from one particular 1937 Talbot-Lago earlier this month, and, well, the vintage ride did not disappoint.

The coveted T150-C-SS Teardrop Coupe in question—chassis No. 90107—sold for a record-breaking $13.4 million at Gooding & Company’s live auction at Florida’s Omni Amelia Island Resort on March 4. Shattering the pre-sale estimate of $10 million, it’s now the most valuable French car ever sold at auction and the most expensive Talbot-Lago in existence.

The high hammer price isn’t a total surprise. For starters, this Goutte d’Eau, or “Teardrop,” variant is one of only a handful to feature bodywork designed and fabricated Figoni et Falaschi. It’s also one of just two to sport elegant all-alloy Modèle New York coachwork, and the only such example with its exterior still intact.

Under the hood, meanwhile, lies a 4.0-liter inline-six engine with overhead valves and three Zenith-Stromberg carburetors that’s capable of churning out about 140 hp at 4,100 rpm. In addition, the coupe is fitted with a Wilson pre-selector gearbox, which allows the driver to “pre-select” the next gear, along with four-wheel mechanical brakes, a front independent suspension and a live rear axle. All of this combined was enough to render the T150-C-SS a real performance car for the time.