Description
1957 Bentley S1 Continental HJ Mulliner Fastback
Details
Registration No: WOY 6
Chassis No: BC92BG
MOT: Exempt
£375, 000
One of just ninety-seven right-hand drive S1 Continentals clothed in H. J. Mulliner’s iconic Design Number 7400
Arguably the ultimate Bentley S1 Continental variant. Among the very fastest and most glamorous four-seaters of its generation
An exhaustive, body off, chassis up restoration in October 2016
As impressive underneath as it is on top
‘WOY 6’ is surely worthy of a place in another significant collection
Allocated design number 7400, the two-door all-aluminium Fastback coachwork which H. J. Mulliner crafted for the Bentley S1 Continental chassis was decidedly rarer than that fitted to its R-Type predecessor. Stylistically more reserved but still "flowing and purposeful and free from any needless excrescence", the newcomer was not only underpinned by a notably stiffer chassis (up fifty percent in terms of torsional rigidity) but also boasted a smaller turning circle, more compliant suspension and improved hydraulic brakes. Typically allied to four-speed automatic transmission, its refined 4887cc OISE straight-six engine yielded a 120mph top speed and impressive acceleration. Arguably the ultimate Bentley S1 Continental variant, the H. J. Mulliner Fastback was among the very fastest and most glamorous four-seaters of its generation.
According to its accompanying copy build records, chassis BC-92-BG was initially ordered by Jack Barclay Ltd on 16th October 1956 for A. S. Butler Esq. Destined to be one of just ninety-seven right-hand drive S1 Continentals that were clothed in accordance with H. J. Mulliner’s iconic Design Number 7400, the London coachbuilder’s internal memorandums reveal that work had begun on Body Number 5973 the previous month. As well as having “all possible done to reduce weight” (including foregoing rear picnic tables), the four- / five-seater had its instrument board and rear number plate treatment executed to a “special design as drawing” and “special arrangement as prototype” respectively. Finished in the stunning combination of Velvet Green with Beige leather upholstery and benefiting from power assisted steering, the Bentley was granted the London number plate ‘TUL 204’ on 12th April 1957.
Paying a premium to circumvent the waiting list for a particularly desirable motorcar is not a modern phenomenon. With demand for the S1 Continental HJ Mulliner Fastback far outstripping supply, it was not unusual for nominal first owners to sell cars on (or be persuaded to step aside) before ever taking delivery. Thus, Jack Barclay Ltd’s Order Number 6387 shows that Peter Cadbury Esq. agreed to pay £7, 000 for chassis BC-92-BG on 9th July 1957; funding the purchase by part exchanging his existing S1 Continental HJ Mulliner Fastback and paying a £1, 000 supplement (it also lists the car as ‘used’). A famously irascible character, Cadbury had served as a jet fighter test pilot during World War Two. Eschewing his family’s chocolate business, he became a theatre ticket and television entrepreneur during the 1950s and 1960s. It seems Cadbury changed his mind for whatever reason because Jack Barclay Ltd’s Order Number 6744 reveals that I. C. Sanderson Esq. subsequently bought the two-door Fixed Head for £6, 500 on 31st October 1957 (interestingly, the corresponding invoice identifies it as a new car). A former World War One fighter ace who flew Sopwith Camel biplanes to eleven victories before being invalided out, Ivan Couper Sanderson was a serial Rolls-Royce and Bentley owner. No stranger to impressive velocities, he specified that the Fastback be shod with Dunlop Speed Special tubeless tyres.
Returning to the Jack Barclay Ltd fold, ‘TUL 204’ was next bought by Colonel M. W. Batchelor of Standhills, Sheffield for £6, 250 on 15th July 1959. A tinned food magnate employing over 1, 500 people, he was succeeded thirty seven months later by C. Derek Murray Esq of Kenton, Newcastle-upon-Tyne who part-exchanged a 1962 Jaguar E-Type 3. 8 Fixed Head Coupe registered as ‘TY 1’ with the famous London dealer. Five years old at the time, the Bentley had depreciated to £3, 650 (still the cost of six Ford Anglia 105Es). The four- / five-seater’s next known keeper was Michael Walker Esq of Holmlea, Sheets Heath, Surrey who took possession in 1987 and re-registered it as ‘MW 920’. Sold to garagiste, Bentley Drivers’ Club member and author of ‘Another Set of Wheels’ Alan Milbank at the turn of the century, the S1 Continental HJ Mulliner Fastback reverted to Mr Walker’s custodianship in time to be exhibited at the Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club’s 2005 South of England Rally.
Photographs on file show that the Bentley was still presentable when entrusted to Richards of England for an exhaustive, body off, chassis up restoration in October 2016. Commissioned by the Chief Executive of a leading software company, the work took some two and a half years to complete and cost over £339, 000 with the finished article being deemed worthy of an eleven-page feature in the Mulliner Edition of ‘The Bentley Centenary Opus’. Limited to 100 copies (the second of which comes with the car, the first having gone to Bernie Ecclestone), it remains a singularly impressive and weighty book! Although Richards of England handled the bodywork, paintwork, retrimming, rewiring and reassembly work themselves (Paul Richards have apprenticed at Crewe as a trimmer), they outsourced the thorough engine and back axle overhauls plus the suspension set-up and air-conditioning installation to acknowledged Bentley R-Type and S-Type Continental experts Padgett Motor Engineers.
Forming part of an impressive private collection encompassing Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Jaguar, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz and Lister motorcars since 2021, the Bentley has been meticulously gone through and de-bugged. An aeroplane as well as a motorcar collector, the vendor has always viewed safety as paramount and likes his machinery to be ‘just so’. Convinced that the four-speed automatic gearbox could be smoother in operation he had it rejuvenated by Graham Whitehouse Autos Ltd of Halesowen (on Padgett’s recommendation) at a cost of £5, 268. 12. Further fettling has seen fine tuning of the brakes, suspension, carburation and steering etc not to mention the acquisition of the desirable number plate ‘WOY 6’.
Simply stunning in the metal, we would highly commend chassis BC-92-BG to anyone looking for a S1 Continental HJ Mulliner Fastback. The seller is happy for a prospective purchaser’s preferred marque specialist to inspect the car and indeed we would be surprised if there was a better one on the market at the moment (regardless of price). As impressive underneath as it is on top, ‘WOY 6’ is surely worthy of a place in another significant collection.
