The Delahaye VLR was a four-wheel-drive passenger vehicle clearly inspired by the Jeep and first presented, after an unusually long gestation, by Delahaye during the Summer of 1950. At a time when the luxury car market had been driven into freefall by a combination of government taxation policy and the depressed state of the postwar economy, the VLR was critical in keeping alive the company that produced it during the early 1950s.
"VLR" stood for Véhicule léger de reconnaissance (light reconnaissance vehicle). The name "VLRD" (Véhicule léger de reconnaissance Delahaye) is also sometimes used.
Development
The vehicle featured a light metal ohc four-cylinder water-cooled engine of (initially) 1,992 cc[1] and, by the standards of the time, a sophisticated suspension system. The four-speed gearbox featured synchromesh on all forward gears.[1]
During the second half of 1950 the French army tested it extensively and declared themselves impressed. With only very minor modifications, they homologated the VLR for army use and placed an order for slightly more than 4,000.[1]