Collector cars are not unlike their owners in that they can progress through stages in their lives. A car has a birth, active life, middle age and maturity, then old age. Then, sadly most finally expire after a long and active life, many with ignominious ends. The subject car, YM5044, went through such a progression and even had a burial. Forty years after its interment, it then rose like Lazarus from the grave to again join the living.

The mechanical genius of W. O. Bentley, on occasion, is fully complemented by the styling genius of a coach builder. The result is that some cars are extraordinarily beautiful as well as being mechanically superb. A few could, perhaps, be viewed as graceful mechanical works of art. YM5044, in this writer’s opinion, is such a motorcar.

The ravages of wear and tear, time and/or their owner’s indifference has exacted its toll on many beautiful cars over the years. Whether intentional or not, many have been grossly abused, neglected and even abandoned. They sometimes end their useful lives as derelicts, unappreciated and abandoned. Many exceptional cars have gone to the wreckers and are gone forever. A few which escaped, when found, are totally bereft of any trace of their original beauty. Such was nearly the fate of YM5044.

Fortunately, there are passionate enthusiasts who have rescued many cars that were (are) in deplorable condition. Their passion for the marque caused them to subsequently commit substantial time and financial resources to bring a vintage Bentley back from the dead. Such an owner is William Ruger, Jr. of New Hampshire, USA, the current owner of YM5044.

YM5044 when new                                                                From: BDC files

This 8 litre with its original engine, YM5044, is a 13’ long chassis type. It was completed and delivered in 1931. The chassis has all of the usual refinements of the 8 litre cars. The unique coachwork is by Lancefield. It was designed and executed as a true tourer. This true one-of-a-kind design is the only body erected by Lancefield on an 8 litre chassis. It is one of only six 8 litre cars originally configured as a tourer. The original registration mark is GX6152.

Originally a second windscreen was fitted to shield the rear-seat passengers from the buffeting suffered by riders in the rear seats of open cars. The front wings are razor-edge helmet-types. A valence panel covered the chassis frame from the front wing to the middle of the spare tire.

The abbreviated running boards extend from the front doors to the traditionally-styled full rear wings. There are no side windows or screens. There were two side-mounted spares. Interestingly enough, ace wheel discs were mounted on the spare but not the road wheels. There was a small hatch at the back of the body work. This allowed for very limited storage beneath the hood stowage compartment.

The top is a full “disappearing hood” configuration. There is a hinged metal lid immediately behind the rear seat which covered the hood mechanism and fabric when lowered. It provides for a very tidy and attractive appearance with the hood down.

Before the restoration, when the hood was erected YM5044 has an unfortunate clumsy appearance. The hood fabric was affixed to the rear body work in front of the hood stowage compartment lid. It appears as if its design and placement was an afterthought.

From: Bill Ruger Jr. files

The original paint scheme was a painted silver body with maroon wings and wheels. It was not polished aluminum as has been rumored. It must have made a striking appearance when new.

The Lancefield bodywork included front helmet-style wings, abbreviated running boards and high waistline. All of this resulted in giving YM5044 a long, sleek, elegant look that is now a pure joy to behold.

Esthetics notwithstanding, the long narrow body has relatively limited room. Both the front and rear seats are bench-types. Swathed in pleated hides, they are very comfortable, but can accommodate four adults only. There is no room for luggage or any cargo whatsoever. It is a much narrower car than YX5106, the 8 litre Thrupp & Maberly drop head coupe covered in the June 2007 issue of the REVIEW.

It never ceases to amaze this writer that the open 8 liters are such large cars but have such limited carrying capacity. One wonders what the owners did with their luggage? If touring with luggage is envisioned, then YM5044 provides comfortable touring for only two.

All four doors have flap pockets fitted for maps and other hand items. The rear doors have beautifully finished recessed fitted wooden cubbies with scent bottles.

The instrumentation is standard 8 litre. The speedo was out of the car being re-calibrated when it was photographed for this article.

According to the factory records in club archives, YM5044 was sold by Bentley dealers Jack Barclay & Jack Olding Ltd to its first owner, a Mr. Prescott of Suffolk, in 1932. This was after Bentley Motors went to the receivers, of course.

The current owner has the two original buff log books. They are both the initial and the subsequent book stamped “duplicate” with a date stamp of 5 Dec 55. When these log books still exist they provide invaluable and irrefutable documentation of a car’s ownership history.

YM5044, was registered in the name of Edward Clifford Prescott, 10 Heathview Gardens, Putney Health, SW 15 on 11/5/1932 by the London County Council. The first change noted in the original logbook shows a change of address for Mr. Prescott. Mr. Prescott moved to Westhorpe Lodge, Westhorpe, Showmarket, East Suffolk. He registered the car with the East Suffolk County Council on 17 April, 1952.

The second change shows that a new owner, Henry Russell Jones, Ty Derwen, Llanfair. D. C, Ruthin, North Wales, registered YM5044 with the Denbigh County Council on 19 July 1952. Mr. Jones paid the road tax for 1952 (£29.10.9), 1953 and 1954 (£12.10.0 each).

The third change in the first log book shows an ownership change to Mr. David Edmund Cleaton Roberts c/o Westminster Bank Ltd, 84 Kensington High St., London W.8, date stamped by the London County Council on September 12, 1954. The London C. C. road taxes for 1955 to December 31, 1959 are shown as paid by Mr. Roberts. It is interesting to note that full-year road taxes were paid through 1956. Starting in 1957, payment of the road tax was made quarterly. The last recorded payment on October 12, 1959 for road tax through December 31, 1959. It is a fair assumption that YM5044 was taken off the road starting on or about January 1, 1960.

As an aside, Tim Houlding advises that the Ministry of Transport caused the owners of cars to have their vehicles inspected annually commencing in the early 1960’s. Many older cars were taken off the road by their owners as they had no chance of passing technical scrutiny. It was not uncommon that cars were simply scrapped as the expense of bringing them up to scratch was simply prohibitive. Perhaps this applied to YM5044 and contributed in whole or in part to its being taken off the road.

There is a final change on the duplicate log book showing an address change for Mr. Roberts to 5 Queens Road, Teddington, Middlesex TW11 0LX. It is signed by Mr. Roberts but is not date stamped. In light of the assumption that TM5044 was taken off the road as of 1960, the car remained in storage in the ownership of Mr. Roberts for 44 years. The log book’s data questions the 37-year storage that has been mentioned in the Christies catalogue and the articles in The Automobile and Octane.

The factory records in club archives contain few entries, ending in 1937. All of the entries relate to the factory sending parts to various garages in 1934, 1935, 1936 and 1937. The car was laid up during WWII and, in fact, was stored in the basement of Jack Barclay’s palatial showrooms in central London.

Early on, Mr. Roberts entered YM5044 in numerous automobile competitions. They were organized by the BDC and the VSCC. These included the Firle Hill Climb at Eastbourne, BDC events at Silverstone and the Brighton Speed Trials. Although comparative records do not exit, this has to be one of the few 13‘ 8 litre cars with a competition history.

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At BDC Silverstone	YM5044 at Firle Hillclimb in 1956	YM5044 at Firle Hillclimb in 1956
From: Bill Ruger Jr. files & Octane magazine

One can see that YM5044 was in good condition in these photos with what looks like the original paint scheme. There is no apparent damage after 23 years or so. The cowl over the front of the rear compartment had been added by this time. It is not known by whom or when.

A photograph exists showing YM5044 coming away from the start at the Brighton Speed Trials on 3 September, 1955. Mr. Roberts is piloting YM5044 against Bob Gregory in his Speed 6.

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YM5044, on right, in competition in September of 1955	YM5044 at Brighton Speed Trials 1 Sep 1956
From: Bill Ruger Jr. files & BDC Archives

Mr. Roberts was a very private individual and little is known of him and what he did with the car. It is known, however, that he had LC Mackenzie install triple S. U. carburetors and twin electric fuel pumps to give the car more power along with the required additional fuel supply.

When Mr. Roberts took YM5044 off the road it was not the simple process that most of us think of. At some point Mr. Roberts parked his car in his garage and bricked it up for safe keeping. It is the “burial” referred to at the beginning of this article.

YM5044 next saw the light of day in 2004 when Mr. Roberts, then in his eighties, decided that he would never drive the car again. Mr. Roberts was interviewed for an article in the June 2004 issue of Octane magazine. It was then that YM5044 was unearthed and prepared for the Christies auction. In the article he confirmed the original color of the car, why he bought it, the modifications he made and the competitions he entered.

It was re-commissioned with relatively little effort in preparation for the Christies sale. According to the Octane article, the original magneto still had a good spark. Once the carbs were primed and the engine fired up, it purportedly ran well. Surprisingly after the decades of accumulated crud was blown out of the silencers, the engine ran clean.

Sadly though, by that time of its “resurrection,” the car was seriously deteriorated. The tin worm had had its way with the metal beneath the paint. The same applied to the leather, fabric and wood courtesy of the local rodent population. Parts had also gone missing. YM5044 needed a total “ground up” restoration.

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Prior to Christies 2004 auction
From: 'The Automobile', Sept 2004 & Octane magazine

Bill Ruger, Jr. had the vision and passion to purchase YM5044 at the Christies auction. He became the cars fourth owner in its then seventy-two year history. YM5044 was subsequently put into a container and transported to the United States. A comprehensive restoration by one of the foremost restorers in the USA followed, being completed in early 2007.

During the restoration, Bill made several changes to the car. He did, however, leave the triple S. U. Carb set-up intact as installed by Mr. Roberts.

He added a full-flow oil filter and removed the second windscreen and cowl. The clumsy looking hood canvas attachment point was moved from the front of the hood compartment lid to the rear of the body work. The hood frame itself was not modified. This is not only a more practical application but makes for a much more attractive appearance. More than one observer has noted that the car actually looks better now with the hood up, rather than down.

The twin side-mounted spares were removed in favor of a single rear-mounted unit. This was another esthetic improvement which filled in the clumsy open space between the main body tub and the petrol tank. This change now makes YM5044 appear even longer and more graceful. Wheel discs to all road wheels were also fitted for a nicely finished and clean appearance.

Inasmuch as the rear storage area was almost useless as it was so small. The bodywork was closed up as access to the storage compartment was now eliminated by the placement of the new spare mount and tire.

The changes to the body make for a much more harmonious appearance. A most satisfactory result finished off in with black paint with light tan hides and canvas.

Following YM5044’s comprehensive restoration, Bill entered his car in the March 2007 Amelia Island Concours in Florida. It was awarded the Most Elegant Bentley trophy. Well deserved recognition for another extremely handsome and important vintage Bentley.

This is not, however, a “trailer queen” for showing only. Bill drives it often and was an enthusiastic participant in the May 2007 North American Vintage Bentley Meet in New York. There was rain, mud and dirt and Bill drove is car “con gusto.” It is truly a feast for both eyes and ears!

What a fitting condition for YM5044 after the travails it has suffered over the years. Another important car, nearly lost, is now restored to stunningly beautiful condition.

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At Amelia Island, March 2007

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At home, August 2007