1924 Bentley 3-Litre Speed Model
- Engine
- 4.5L inline-four (rebuilt from 3.0L), Phoenix crankshaft and connecting rods
- Colour
- Polished body with vermillion wings
A Bentley 3-Litre Speed Model constructed around a Bentley Works Service recommissioned chassis frame (RC964), shortened to a 9-foot wheelbase, and fitted with a Tourist Trophy-style two-seater taper-tail body built by Grabner of Oxford in 1969 in the manner of Woolf Barnato's Jarvis-bodied car. The engine originates from chassis 548, originally delivered in May 1924 and later fire-damaged in 1948, subsequently rebuilt to 4½-Litre specification by specialist Stanley Mann around the time of a 2003 ownership transfer. The car has been used extensively on European tours and rallies, including at the Nürburgring.
Ownership
- —Auction saleSold €100,625 (≈ $111K)
- 1924-05-01 →Factory deliveryWCG Blackpartial documentation
Original recipient of the donor car from which the engine was sourced; that car was subsequently lost to fire in 1948.
- 1995 → 2003Acquisition unknownStanley Mannpartial documentation
Noted Bentley specialist who restored the car; upon selling it, he rebuilt the engine to enlarged displacement as part of the transaction terms.
- 2003 →Private saleCurrent collector familyfull documentation
Purchased from Stanley Mann and used the car extensively on European tours and rallies; supporting invoices for mechanical work are retained in the vehicle file.
Competition
No competition history extracted from the catalogue.
Maintenance & restoration
- 1969BodyworkGrabner of Oxford
A Tourist Trophy-style polished two-seater taper-tail body with vermillion wings was constructed by Grabner of Oxford, modelled on Woolf Barnato's well-known Jarvis-bodied 3-Litre.
Body fitted to the shortened RC964 chassis frame.
- 2003Engine rebuildStanley Mann
Engine rebuilt to 4½-Litre specification by Stanley Mann; work included fitting a Phoenix crankshaft and connecting rods, along with installation of new gears in both the gearbox and rear axle.
Carried out as a condition of the sale to the current collection; supporting invoices are held in the car's file.
- —MechanicalWilliam Medcalf
C-Type gears supplied and fitted by William Medcalf at an unspecified date after the car entered the current collection.
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