Thursday 9th October 1919

The legendary Hispano-Suiza H6 luxury car was introduced at the Paris Motor Show. The H6 engine featured a 6.5 litre all aluminium straight-six engine inspired by designer Marc Birkigt’s work on aircraft engines. One of the most notable features of the H6 was its brakes. They were light-alloy drums on all four wheels with power-assist, the first in the industry, driven with a special shaft from the transmission. When the car was decelerating, its own momentum drove the brake servo to provide additional power. This technology was later licensed to other manufacturers, including arch-rival Rolls-Royce.