Hispano-Suiza Coupe Chauffeur J12 from 1934, 12 cylinders, 9424 cc, 200 HP, 140 km/h. It was one of the fastest luxury cars from that period. Bodied by Kellner.
The Kellner Coachbuilding Company, founded by George Kellner, began creating custom bodies for carriages in 1861.
Georges Kellner Jr. is credited as being the creator of the ‘torpedo’ body style.
Kellner coachwork graced only the most prestigious chassis: Bentley, Bugatti (including the Type 41 Royale), Hispano-Suiza and, of course, Rolls-Royce. Unlike many coachbuilders, Kellner survived the Great Depression.
Hispano-Suiza (Spanish for ‘Spanish-Swiss’) is a Spanish automotive–engineering company. It was founded in 1904 by Marc Birkigt and Damian Mateu as an automobile manufacturer and eventually had several factories in Spain and France that produced luxury cars, aircraft engines, trucks and weapons.
In 1923, its French luxury car arm became a semi-autonomous partnership with the Spanish parent company. In 1946, the Spanish parent company sold all of its Spanish automotive assets to Enasa, a Spanish state-owned vehicle manufacturer, and the French arm continued as an independent aviation engine and components manufacturer under the Hispano-Suiza name.
In 1968, Hispano-Suiza was taken over by the aerospace company Snecma, which is now part of the French Safran Group. An attempt to relaunch the marque was made by the company Hispano Suiza Cars associated with the Peralada Group (owned by the Suqué Mateu family) in 2019 with a fully-electric car.
