Talbot-Lago T26C
| Designer | Talbot-Lago | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production | 1948–1950 | ||||||||
| Technical specifications | |||||||||
| Chassis | Steel box-section frame, aluminium body | ||||||||
| Suspension (front) | wishbones, transverse leaf spring, friction shock absorbers | ||||||||
| Suspension (rear) | live axle, semi-elliptic leaf springs, friction shock absorbers | ||||||||
| Length | 4,077 mm (160.5 in) | ||||||||
| Width | 1,308 mm (51.5 in) | ||||||||
| Axle track | 1,372 mm (54.0 in) (front) 1,308 mm (51.5 in) (rear) | ||||||||
| Wheelbase | 2,502 mm (98.5 in) | ||||||||
| Engine | 4.5 L (270 cu in) OHV I6 (260 bhp) FR layout | ||||||||
| Transmission | Wilson pre-selector 4-speed manual transmission | ||||||||
| Weight | 950 kg (2,090 lb) | ||||||||
| Competition history | |||||||||
| Notable drivers | France Louis Rosier France Yves Giraud-Cabantous France Philippe Étancelin | ||||||||
| Debut | 1950 British Grand Prix | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Constructors' Championships | 0 (Note that the Constructors' Championship was first awarded in 1958) | ||||||||
| Drivers' Championships | 0 | ||||||||
The Talbot-Lago T26C was a single-seater racing car designed and developed by French manufacturer Talbot-Lago. It featured a box section chassis, an unsupercharged 4,483 cc (273.6 cu in) capacity 93 mm × 110 mm (3.66 in × 4.33 in) straight-six engine and a four speed Wilson preselector gearbox.[3] The chassis and gearbox were derived from the company's 1930s racing cars and were similar to those used on their post-war road cars.[3] For the 1950 Formula One season a version with a more powerful engine was introduced, with revised carburation and twin spark plugs. These variants are known as T26C-DA (for Double Allume, i.e. twin plug).[3]
Racing history
[edit | edit source]The T26C made its racing debut in the 1948 Monaco Grand Prix, finishing second in the hands of Louis Chiron.[3] Grand Prix victories were achieved the following year with Louis Rosier winning the 1949 Belgian Grand Prix[4] and Louis Chiron winning the 1949 French Grand Prix.[5]
A modified version, the T26C-GS (for Grand Sport), fitted with two-seater bodywork, cycle wings and lights, won the 1950 24 Hours of Le Mans driven by Louis Rosier and Jean-Louis Rosier.[3]
Doug Whiteford won the 1952 and 1953 Australian Grand Prix driving a Talbot-Lago T26C.

Technical data
[edit | edit source]| Technical data | T26C (F1) |
|---|---|
| Engine: | Front mounted 6-cylinder in-line engine |
| Displacement: | 4482 cm³ |
| Bore x stroke: | 93 x 110 mm |
| Max power at rpm: | 260 hp at 5 000 rpm |
| Valve control: | 2 camshafts in the engine block, 2 push rod actuated valves per cylinder |
| Compression: | 11.0:1 |
| Carburetor: | 3 Zenith 50 HN |
| Gearbox: | 4-speed Wilson preselector box |
| suspension front: | Double cross links, transverse leaf springs |
| suspension rear: | Rigid rear axle, longitudinal leaf springs |
| Brakes: | Hydraulic drum brakes |
| Chassis & body: | Steel box beam frame with aluminum body |
| wheelbase: | 250 cm |
| Dry weight: | 950 kg |
| Top speed: | 270 km/h |
Complete Formula One World Championship results
[edit | edit source]Works team entries
[edit | edit source](key)
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Driver | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | T26C-DA | Talbot L6 | GBR | MON | 500 | SUI | BEL | FRA | ITA | |
| France Yves Giraud-Cabantous | 4 | DNA | Ret | Ret | 8 | |||||
| France Eugene Martin | Ret | Ret | ||||||||
| France Louis Rosier | 3 | 3 | 6* | |||||||
| France Philippe Étancelin | Ret | |||||||||
| France Raymond Sommer | Ret |
- * Indicates shared drive with Charles Pozzi in his privately entered T26C
n.b. Prior to 1958 there was no Constructor's World Championship, hence constructors were not awarded points.
Results of other Talbot-Lago cars
[edit | edit source](key) (Results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap.)
- * Indicates shared drive
References
[edit | edit source]- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b c d e Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ VIII Grand Prix de Belgique, www.statsf1.com Retrieved on 17 February 2014
- ^ VI Grand Prix de France, www.statsf1.com Retrieved on 17 February 2014
