Description
Details:
Oldtimer Australia is delighted to offer for sale this very elegant 1935 Bentley 3½ Litre “E” Series Sports Tourer.
The build sheets on file show the rolling chassis was on test on the 15th June 1935 and delivered on 24th June 1935 to Lillie Hall ready for the body to be fitted. The car was fitted with a Thrupp & Maberly four door sports saloon body and Rudge-Withworth wire wheels. The delivery date for the completed car was the 29th August 1935.
The car’s first owner was Walford Turner Esq. from Birmingham, UK. There are a few subsequent owners mentioned on the build sheet, the last one being DA Claxton from Havant in South East Hampshire in the UK. He acquired the car on 6th October 1959.
At some stage the car found its way to the USA where it was acquired by the father of the current owner in December 1987. He acquired the car from Cyril A Conrad in La Jolla, California. There is a Californian registration card in his name on file for the car. At that time the car was tired and in need of a restoration. It was then shipped to Australia, arriving here in February 1988.
Upon arrival in Australia the car was assessed and the original body was found to be in poor condition. The owner had kept a photo of a Bentley 3½ Litre fitted with a Vanden Plas Sports Tourer body and quickly decided that he would rebody his car in that style rather than rebuild the existing Thrupp & Maberly body.
The original body was removed from the chassis and the car was completely disassembled for a ground up restoration. The first job was to strip and repaint the chassis. Next, the engine, gearbox and differential were sent to Bruce Ross Automotive in Pennant Hills, Sydney to be overhauled.
The next challenge was to find the right person to build the new body for the car. The owner knew Geoff Smedley from well respected restoration shop Classic Cars in Launceston who was working on a similar project at the time. He contacted him to see if he was interested in building the body for his car. Smedley accepted the challenge. The rolling chassis, engine, gearbox, differential, wheels, fuel tank and othere parts were all shipped to Launceston and Smedley started his work creating the Vanden Plas tourer body for the car. By June 1992 the restoration was completed. The end result was stunning.
The car has remained in the same family ever since.
There were some complications with the engine that necessitated a rebuild in 2008. That work was carried out by Bargwanna & Sons in Como south of Sydney. At that time a new engine block was sourced and installed. Subsequently, the cylinder head was also replaced.
Post restoration the car was used and enjoyed, however, in recent times it has been used sparingly. Importantly, this car has always been regularly maintained, mostly in house, by its knowledgeable and experienced owners.
Although this car was restored 30 plus years ago, it still presents and drives beautifully today. This is a testament to the quality of the restoration and how the car has been subsequently cared for. This Bentley 3½ Litre is presented in a shade of Bentley green, with black guards and a red interior, a colour combination that suits the car very well. The body is a work of art and it remains tight with excellent panel gaps all around. Everything opens and closes easily and the doors have not sagged. The paint work has withstood the test of time and the quality of the body and paint ooze that old school craftsmanship. The paint has retained its deep gloss finish and strong depth of colour. You would not believe the car was painted in the early nineties. Yes, if you look up close you will notice a few very minor imperfections and the odd stone chip.
You cannot miss the bright work on this car especially the big headlights and grill with the iconic Bentley badge at the front. The chrome work is generally in good condition. The lights, horns, windscreen surround and the grill are all in good condition. The bumpers are showing some light pitting and minor flaking in certain areas.
Like the exterior of this car, the interior is also beautifully preserved. The red upholstery presents really well. The leather seats are in very good condition with no rips or tears evident. They are firm and quite comfortable. The red carpets also present well. The wooden dashboard is a real feature and all the instruments are clear and in good condition. On our test drive they were all working as they should.
Out on the road this car is an absolute delight to drive. In fact, this Bentley is one of the most impressive prewar cars to drive that we have had the pleasure to offer for sale in a long time. The car starts easily, even from cold. The starting procedure is simple . . . turn the ignition on, advance the hand throttle a touch, retard the ignition, set the choke to the start position and press the starter button. Bam . . . the engine starts immediately. After following the starting instructions we patiently wait for the engine to warm up before we edge the car out into the traffic. It immediately becomes obvious that this car has a presence. We are getting a lot of thumbs up from both pedestrians and other drivers.
This car is surprisingly easy to drive, especially when you consider that you are driving a 90 year old car. The engine ticks over like a Swiss watch and it has more than enough power on tap to keep up with modern traffic. The four speed gearbox only has synchros on third and fourth gear, so you have to be considered when using first and second gear. The reality is that first and second gear are only required when taking off from a standing start. If slowing down the engine has more than enough torque to pull the car from a low speed in third gear. You very quickly master the gear changes, which are unexpectedly smooth and precise both up and down the box. The steering is also precise and quite direct. It is not as heavy as one might expect. The mechanical brakes have a good feel and pull the car up easily and in a straight line when needed. On our test drive the ambient temperature was around 30 degrees Celsius. Importantly, all the vitals were all very good. The temperature gauge stayed between 70 and 80 degrees Celsius the whole time and the oil pressure stayed around 25 psi.
Accompanying the car is a tool kit, jack, spare wheel and an excellent history file containing a copy of the build sheets, a US title, photos of the restoration and some invoices for miscellaneous works completed over the years.
What a great car!
Highlights:
- Beautifully presented Bentley 3½ Litre Sports Tourer.
- Elegant Vanden Plas body built by Geoff Smedley.
- Stunning colour scheme.
- Single family ownership since 1987.
- Drives exceptionally well.
- Ready to use and enjoy.
Price AUD $199, 950.
Background:
The Bentley motor car company was founded back in 1919 by brothers WO and HM Bentley. The Bentley brothers were involved in the motor industry having acquired the agency to sell French built DFP (Doriot, Flandrin & Parant) cars in 1912, however, they desperately wanted to build their own cars.
WO Bentley had established himself as a brilliant engineer during World War I when the French made DFP in which he competed, achieved a number of wins in various races and hill climbs. He was one of the first engineers who realised the advantage of using aluminium to create pistons. W. O Bentley was discharged from the army in 1919 and he set about creating his own car. His experience with aircraft engines proved an excellent starting point. He was also heavily influenced by two pre-war designs, the 1914 Grand Prix Mercedes and the 1913 Coupe de l’Auto Peugeot.
Bentley developed a 3. 0 litre monobloc engine which featured four valves per cylinder, twin spark plugs and twin magnetos. He made extensive use of aluminium and magnesium which were quite exotic materials in the 1920’s, especially for road going cars. The first prototype, EXP1, was tested by “The Autocar” and received a glowing report. It was described as “For the man who wants a true sporting type of light-bodied car for use on a Continental tour – where speed limits are not meant to be observed – the 3 Litre Bentley is undoubtedly the car par excellence.”
The second prototype, EXP2, made its debut at the 1919 Olympia motor show. The new Bentley 3. 0 Litre attracted a lot of attention however it wasn’t until September 1921 that the first model rolled of the production line. Between the 1919 motor show and September 1921 much work had been done to further refine the chassis. EXP2 was the first Bentley to record a race win at Brooklands on May 16th 1921. Bentley continued to use it for further testing in 1921 and 1922 before it was sold in 1923. EXP2 still exists today and is the oldest surviving Bentley.
Initially, production of the Bentley 3. 0 Litre was slow but they got the formula right and their cars proved to be luxurious, reliable and fast thus attracting buyers from the elite of society. it didn’t take long for the order books to be filled with names of wealthy and aristocratic clients, including Prince George (later the Duke of Kent), the Prince of Wales (Edward VIII) and the Duke of York, later King George VI.
Just like other manufactures in that period, Bentley supplied the engine, drive train, suspension and chassis, letting the client decide which coachbuilder they wanted to use to supply the body. Bentley offered three versions of their 3. 0 Litre and they were identified by the colour of the badge on the radiator – the blue label, the red label and the green label. The blue label was the standard engine, the red label was powered by a higher compression engine and the green label was the high-performance model. Bentley had great confidence in their cars and offered a five year warranty on the blue and red label model. The green label, however, only came with a one year warranty because it really was a race car.
The cars were also incredibly successful on the race track with Bentley achieving the ultimate success winning Le Mans in 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929 and 1930. The Bentley 3. 0 Litre was able to beat the the much smaller and more nimble Bugattis, prompting Ettore Bugatti to call it “the fastest lorry in the world”.
The difficult economic times in the late 1920’s had a major impact on Bentley and they stopped motor racing soon after winning Le Mans in 1930 and ultimately fell into receivership in 1931. Rolls-Royce acquired the assets of Bentley in late 1931. In this period Bentley produced some fabulous motor cars including the 3. 0 Litre, 4½ Litre, ‘Blower Bentley’, 6½ Litre and 8. 0 Litre models that are all today highly sought after by enthusiasts and collectors all over the world. The first new Bentley produced following Rolls Royce’s acquisition was the Bentley 3½ Litre which evolved into the Bentley 4¼ Litre. Bentleys of this era are also known as Derby Bentleys as they were built at Rolls Royce’s factory located in Derby in the north of England.
The Bentley 3. 5 Litre was built from 1933 through until 1939 and in total 1, 177 examples were built.
