Le Mans 24 hour race 1937

The start of the race

The three Peugeot 302 Darl'Mat DS before the start

Peugeot 302 Darl'Mat DS

The 14th 24-hour race at Le Mans , the 14 ^s Grand Prix d'Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans , also Les 24 Heures du Mans Circuit de la Sarthe , was held from 19 to 20 June 1937 on the Circuit des 24 Heures instead.

The race

After a year break, a 24-hour race was held again in 1937. The French motorsport press followed Bugatti's return as a works team with great interest . After the success at the French Grand Prix in Montlhéry in 1936 , two Bugatti Type 57G were equipped with an aerodynamic body. The mission was taken over by Rober Labric, who shared a vehicle with Pierre Veyron . The second car was driven by Jean-Pierre Wimille and Robert Benoist . In addition to a few private Bugattis, seven Delahayes also came from France. Chenard & Walcker was also seen for the last time at Le Mans. The future Grand Prix driver Yves Giraud-Cabantous fielded two streamlined vehicles that were already 12 years old. From the UK came Aston Martin , Riley , Singer and MG . A works team from Germany took part for the first time: Adler sent its Trumpf racing sedans to the Sarthe. Despite the factory Bugattis, the aging Alfa Romeo 8C were once again the favorites for overall victory in 1937; but only Raymond Sommer's car was at the start .

Again it was Raymond Sommer who hurried away from the field shortly after the start when there was a serious accident after an hour of racing.

The second Maison Blanche accident

Once before , in 1927 , the fast section at Maison Blanche had been the scene of a pile-up. In 1937, the Frenchman René Kippeurt came off the track with his Bugatti Type 44 at 150 km / h on the ninth lap . The Bugatti slid sideways and rolled over several times. Kippeurt was thrown out of the vehicle. Several cars drove up: first the German Fritz Roth, who brushed the wreck and slid over an embankment onto a field. The next was Pat Farfield , who hit the wreck in his BMW 328 . Jean Trémoulet was thrown into the air with his Delahaye as he drove over wreckage. Roger Caron and George Raphaël Béthenod de Montbressieux were also involved in the accident. In contrast to 1927, this time the mass accident did not have a minor outcome. Kippeurt died at the scene of the accident, and Pat Farfield, who was taken to the hospital, died of serious injuries that night.

The general chaos went completely under, that the leading Raymond Sommer had to give up with engine failure. From this point on, Wimille and Benoist drove towards a safe victory - driving one record lap after the other. In the end they broke all existing records and gave Bugatti its first overall victory at Le Mans.

Results

Pilots by nationality

50 French	26 British	6 Germans	2 Italians	1 American
1 Argentine	1 Australian	1 Greek	1 Canadian	1 Monegasse
1 Dutch	1 Austrian	1 Spaniard	1 Swiss

Final ranking

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires	Round
1	5.0	2	Roger Labric	Jean-Pierre Wimille Robert Benoist	Bugatti Type 57G tank	Bugatti 3.3L I8		243
2	5.0	14th	Joseph Paul	Joseph Paul Marcel Mongin	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		236
3	5.0	10	Ecurie Bleue	René Dreyfus Henri Stoffel	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		231
4th	3.0	19th	Société RV	Jacques de Valence Louis Gérard	Delage D6-70	Delage 3.0L I6		215
5	1.5	37	John Melville Skeffington	John Melville Skeffington Robert Charles Murton-Neale	Aston Martin 1½ Ulster	Aston Martin 1.5L I4		205
6th	2.0	33	Adlerwerke	Petar Count Orssich Rudolph Sauerwein	Adler Super Trumpf racing sedan	Adler 1.7L I4		205
7th	2.0	26th	Emile Darl'Mat	Jean Pujol Marcel Contet	Peugeot 302 Darl'Mat DS	Peugeot 2.0L I4		203
8th	2.0	25th	Emile Darl'Mat	Charles de Cortanze Maurice Serre	Peugeot 203 Darl'Mat DS	Peugeot 2.0L I4		203
9	2.0	34	Adlerwerke	Otto Löhr Paul von Guilleaume	Adler Super Trumpf racing sedan	Adler 1.7L I4		202
10	2.0	27	Emile Darl'Mat	Daniel Porthault Louis Rigal	Peugeot 302 Darl'Mat DS	Peugeot 2.0L I4		197
11	2.0	31	CT Thomas	Mortimer Morris-Goodall Robert Hitchens	Aston Martin Speed ​​Model	Aston Martin 2.0L I4		193
12	1.1	48	Just-Émile Vernet	Just-Émile Vernet Suzanne Largeot	Simca Type 5	Fiat 1.0L I4		171
13	1.5	36	AC Scott	Archie Scott Ted Halford	HRG 1500 Le Mans	Meadows 1.5L I4		163
14th	1.1	42	MKH Bilney	MKH Bilney Joan Richmond	Ford Ten GB	Ford 1.1L I4		161
15th	1.1	49	H. Lesbros	Dimitri Calaraseano Henri Lesbros	Adler Trump Junior	Adler 1.0L I4		160
16	1.1	54	Capt. GET Eyston	Dorothy Stanley-Turner Joan Riddell	MG PB Midget	MG 0.9L I4		154
17th	750	59	Automobiles Gordini	Jean Viale Albert Alin	Simca Cinq	Fiat 0.6L I4		145
Failed
18th	5.0	11	Ecurie Bleue	Laury Schell René Carrière	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		193
19th	1.1	41	Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Yves Giraud-Cabantous Charles Rigoulot	Chenard and Walcker	Chenard and Walcker 1.1L I4		151
20th	5.0	9	Louis Villeneuve	Louis Villeneuve André Vagniez	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		147
21st	1.1	46	Automobiles Gordini	Amédée Gordini Philippe Maillard-Brune	Simca Huit	Fiat 1.1L I4		137
22nd	2.0	32	Eddie Hertzberger	Eddie Hertzberger Albert Debille	Aston Martin Speed ​​Model	Aston Martin 2.0L I4		136
23	5.0	1	Roger Labric	Roger Labric Pierre Veyron	Bugatti Type 57G tank	Bugatti 3.3L I8		130
24	1.1	50	RH Eccles	Marjorie Eccles Freddie de Clifford	Singer 9 Le Mans Replica	Singer 1.0L I4		121
25th	5.0	8th	André Parguel	André Parguel Robert Brunet	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		100
26th	5.0	18th	Raymond de Saugé Destrez	Raymond de Saugé Destrez Genaro Léoz Abad	Bugatti Type 57S	Bugatti 3.3L I8		99
27	1.1	53	Jacques Savoye	Jacques Savoye Pierre Pichard	Singer 9 Le Mans Replica	Singer 1.0L I4		93
28	1.1	52	Team Autosports	GH Boughton FH Lye	Singer 9 Le Mans Replica	Singer 1.0L I4		91
29	750	58	Automobiles Gordini	Adrien Alin Athos Querzola	Simca Cinq	Fiat 0.6L I4		77
30th	750	57	Austin Motor Company	Charles Dodson Bert Hadley	Austin 7	Austin 0.7L I4		74
31	750	55	R. Marsh	Kay Petre George Manganese	Austin 7	Austin 0.7L I4		72
32	1.1	51	Team Autosports	Norman Black John Donald Barnes	Singer 9 Le Mans Replica	Singer 1.0L I4		72
33	1.1	45	Automobiles Gordini	Jacques Blot Henri Ferrand	Simca Huit	Fiat 1.1L I4		55
34	2.0	29	Frazer Nash	Harold John Aldington A. FP Fane	BMW 328	BMW 2.0L I6		43
35	1.5	35	Mme Anne-Cécile Rose-Itier	Anne-Cécile Rose-Itier Fritz Huschke von Hanstein	Adler Trumpf racing sedan	Adler 1.5L I4		40
36	5.0	15th	Jacques Seylair	Jacques Seylair Paul Bénazet	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		36
37	750	56	John Carr	Charles Goodacre Dennis Buckley	Austin 7	Austin 0.7L I4		32
38	2.0	40	Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Marcel Contet Charles Roux	Chenard and Walcker	Chenard et Walcker 1.8L I4		32
39	5.0	3	Arthur W. Fox	Johnny Hindmarsh Charles Brackenbury	Lagonda LG45	Meadows 4.5L I6		30th
40	1.5	39	Ecurie Eudel	Jean Trévoux Guy Lapchin	Riley Sprite TT	Riley 1.5L I4		11
41	5.0	4th	Raymond Summers	Raymond Summers Giovanni Battista Guidotti	Alfa Romeo 8C 2900A Spider	Alfa Romeo 2.9L Supercharged I8		11
42	5.0	12	Eugène Chaboud	Eugène Chaboud Jean Trémoulet	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		9
43	5.0	7th	André M. Embiricos	Nicholas S. Embiricos George Raphaël Béthenod de Montbressieux	Talbot T150C	Talbot 4.0L I6		9
44	1.5	38	Ecurie Eudel	Raoul Forestier Roger Caron	Riley Sprite TT	Riley 1.5L I4		8th
45	2.0	30th	BMW	Fritz Roth Uli Richter	BMW 328	BMW 2.0L I6		8th
46	2.0	28	David Murray	David Murray Pat Fairfield	BMW 328	BMW 2.0L I6		8th
47	3.0	20th	René Kippeurt	René Kippeurt René Poulain	Bugatti Type 44	Bugatti 3.0L I8		8th
48	5.0	21st	Luigi Chinetti	Luigi Chinetti Louis Chiron	Talbot T150C	Talbot 4.0L I6		7th
Not started
49	1.1	44	Automobiles Gordini	Angelo Molinari Marino Zanardi	Simca-Fiat 508S Balilla	Fiat 0.9L I4		1

¹ not started

Only in the entry list

Here you can find teams, drivers and vehicles that were originally registered for the race, but did not take part for various reasons.

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires
50				Lycett	Bentley
51			Michael Collier		Aston Martin
52				Tazio Nuvolari Luigi Chinetti	Alfa Romeo 8C 2900
53				JM Dixon	Alfa Romeo
54				René Poulain Raymond de Saugé Destrez	Bugatti
55				Carlo Nazzaro Roland Robert	Simca
56				Audeuax Jean Breillet	Rally
57		5	Talbot		Talbot T150C
58		6th	Talbot	Louis Chiron Luigi Chinetti	Talbot T150C
59		21st			Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 Pescara
60		22nd			Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 Pescara
61		23			Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 Pescara
62		24			Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 Pescara

Class winner

class	driver	driver	vehicle	Placement in the overall ranking
Index of Performance	Jean-Pierre Wimille	Robert Benoist	Bugatti Type 57G tank	Overall victory
12th Biennial Cup	Mortimer Morris-Goodall	Robert Hitchens	Aston Martin Speed ​​Model	Rank 11
3001-5000 cc	Jean-Pierre Wimille	Robert Benoist	Bugatti Type 57G tank	Overall victory
2001-3000 cc	Jacques de Valence	Louis Gérard	Delage D6-70	Rank 4
1501-2000 cc	Petar Count Orssich	Rudolph Sauerwein	Adler Super Trumpf racing sedan	Rank 6
1101-1500 cc	John Melville Skeffington	Robert Charles Murton-Neale	Aston Martin 1½ Ulster	Rank 5
751-1000 cc	Just-Emile Vernet	Suzanne Largeot	Simca Type 5	Rank 12
up to 750 cm³	Jean Viale	Albert Alin	Simca Cinq	Rank 17

Racing data

• Registered: 62
• Started: 48
• Valued: 17
• Race classes: 8
• Spectators: 50,000
• Honorary starter of the race: John R. Cobb , British racing car driver and speed record holder
• Weather on the race weekend: warm, rain on Saturday evening
• Route length: 13.492 km
• Driving time of the winning team: 24: 00: 00,000 hours
• Total laps of the winning team: 244
• Total distance of the winning team: 3287.938 km
• Winner's average: 136,997 km / h
• Pole position: unknown
• Fastest race lap: Jean-Pierre Wimille - Bugatti Type 57G Tank (# 2) - 5: 13,000 = 155.179 km / h
• Racing series: did not belong to any racing series

literature

• Christian Moity, Jean-Marc Teissèdre, Alain Bienvenu: 24 heures du Mans, 1923–1992. Éditions d'Art, Besançon 1992, ISBN 2-909-413-06-3 .
• RM Clarke: Le Mans. The Bentley & Alfa Years 1923-1939. Brooklands Books, Cobham 1998, ISBN 1-85520-465-7 .

Web links

Commons : 24 Hours of Le Mans 1937  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Results with 24-hour en-piste