Hispano-Suiza J12 History

Introduced in 1931, the J12 was the most ambitious car Hispano-Suiza ever built: a 60-degree V12 of 9,424 cc displacing more cubic inches than most aero-engines of the day, producing 220 hp at 3,000 rpm. The engineering was characteristically thorough — seven-bearing crankshaft, pushrod overhead valves, and four wheelbase lengths (from 135 to 158 inches) to suit any coachbuilder's vision. Two special-order cars received a long-stroke 11.3-litre engine producing 250 hp.

The J12 was sold only as a bare rolling chassis; buyers then engaged the era's great coachbuilders — Saoutchik, Gurney Nutting, Fernandez & Darrin, Figoni et Falaschi — to create bespoke bodies that rank among the most beautiful automobiles ever made. Its clients included European royalty, heads of state, and the international ultra-rich. At prices far exceeding contemporary Rolls-Royces, exclusivity was absolute: only approximately 120 chassis were built before Hispano-Suiza suspended car production in 1938 to concentrate its factories on aircraft engines for the coming war.