Sold for US$ 390,000

Found on Bonhams website on May 24, 2019

LOT 192
2 Jun 2019
Greenwich Concours d'Elegance Auction

1924 Bentley 3/5.3 Liter Le Mans Replica
Coachwork in the style of Vanden Plas
Chassis no. 712
Engine no. 904 (see text)
US$ 375,000 - 450,000

5,300cc SOHC Inline 4-Cylinder Engine, 4 Overhead Valves Per Cylinder (see text)
2 SU Carburetors
140bhp at 3,500rpm
4-Speed Close-Ratio A Type Gearbox
Front and Rear Leaf Spring Suspension
4-Wheel Servo Assisted Drum Brakes

*Fitted with 5.3 liter engine with an estimated 140hp
*Charismatic Old Mother Gun style Le Mans Replica
*Eligible for many events, perfect for high speed tours
*Great looking Vintage Bentley
*Best of both worlds, 3 Liter handling with big Bentley performance

According to factory records Chassis 712 first delivered in July of 1924. This speed model chassis was originally fitted with a Vanden Plas tourer body and was finished in blue. Its first owner was the Hon Maynard Grenville. He would retain the car until 1930. According to Clare Hays "Bentley The Vintage Years, third edition" the car passed through 3 other known owners in the 1930s, and was rebodied twice, first as a saloon, and then again as a tourer. Its history during the war is not known, but by the wars end it was in the possession of Mr. Vaughan Davis. Vaughan Davis was a legend in the BDC and for years campaigned the Bentley Jackson Special "Old Mother Gun" at various racing events and was an extremely active member of the BDC.

Mr. Davis last registered the car in 1948 and would retain the car until the his passing in the late 1990s. The car passed into the ownership of BDC, and Benjerfield club member Spencer Flak. Mr. Flak's intention was to build a fast 3/4.5 for racing. He began the project by purchasing an extremely powerful 5.3-liter four-cylinder engine from Neil Davis. The 5.3 is a development of the standard 4.5 engine and utilized a special block with the bore of the 8 Liter Bentley. Sadly, he did not see the project completed as he was tragically killed in a vintage racing accident while racing a BRM is Australia.

The unfinished project was purchased from the estate by Mr. David Ayre, a well-known Vintage Bentley restorer. As the car had been owned for a year by Vaughan Davis and was a stable mate of Old Mother Gun, it seemed fitting, and a tribute to Vaughan Davis to rebuild the car in the guise of Old Mother Gun circa 1928.

Mr. Ayre's work is well known for producing very fast vintage Bentleys and this car certainly fits into this category fitted with an A Type gearbox, Le Mans 3.3-1 axle ratio, and scintilla magnetos. He also installed late stage three brakes with a Clayton Dewandre servo to ensure the car could be driven with extreme confidence.

Around the time the car was scheduled to be finished, a 6.5 Liter project car became available, and Mr. Ayre decided to sell the car. The car was then acquired by the consigner, a Bentley enthusiast in the states. Along with some research help from Dr. Tim Houlding the car was finished. The consigner took delivery of the car in South Africa and took part in the 2008 three thousand-mile Bentley tour. Since taking delivery of the car, it has completed, one NAVBM, and three US/UK tours, nearly 15,000 trouble free miles.

In recent years the 3 Liter fitted with a 5.3 engine has become extremely popular tour car in the BDC. These cars offer the excellent handling of a 3 Liter, while the 5.3 4 cylinder has a tremendous amount of torque, and can easily keep pace with any other Bentley, even blowers. With 2019 being the hundredth anniversary of Bentley Motors, now is the perfect time to acquire this well sorted and superb Vintage Bentley.

Excerpt from article by Peter C. T. Elsworth, Journal Staff Writer for "The Providence Journal" appeared in the Sep. 15, 2007 issue.

Dr. Paul Sydlowski loves to thrash his 1924 3-liter Bentley.

The green convertible tourer is a fine looking car. With its massive hood and headlights, racing seats and exterior gas tank, it looks every bit the kind of racer that dominated race tracks in the late 1920s.

But the semi-retired ophthalmologist is not interested in owning a trailer queen. What he loves about the car is being able to thrash it, to drive it hard and fast on racetracks and at rallies.

"I owned a Bentley for 10 years before I took it out on a track, and then I realized what a hell of a car it was," he said. He has owned a number of vintage Bentleys over the years.

"This car will keep up with modern traffic," he added as he took a reporter and a photographer out for a 60-mile spin on a recent sunny afternoon. "You drive a Model A on the roads and you're a menace to yourself and everyone else."

But Sydlowski was being coy; his modified 3-liter during restoration he had the new block bored out to 5.3 liters can more than keep up. He has raced it at over 100 mph, and the recent ride included pounding down Route 24 in Massachusetts at (slightly) over the speed limit, leaving poor noodles in their modern cars simply in the dust.

"Look at how well it's balanced," he yelled as he lifted both hands from the steering wheel while the car was flying along at over 70 mph. His hat blew off, but the car held its course, smooth as silk.

He said he had the car built up light and fast to imitate the cars that raced. "(The car) is up to factory specs as in 1924; I'm still breaking in the engine," he said.

Not only is Sydlowski's Bentley fast, it's also astonishingly maneuverable, sticking to the road like glue as he steered it with a racer's finesse through tight curves at 60-plus mph.

"The faster you go, the lighter they are to handle," he said. "From 80-to-90 (mph) there's a little bit of a wobble, but after 90 it's like glass. The car is not stressed when driven with verve."

In 2006, following restoration, he shipped his 1924 Bentley to South Africa for a 3,000-plus mile rally of about 28 vintage Bentleys.

"The car was trucked back and we returned to Paris on the Orient Express," he said, smiling. "That set the hook."

Following last year's South African Rally, he sent the 1924 Bentley back to Britain and had some minor repair work done before having it shipped over here. It arrived in May of this year.

The car is chassis 712 and is now on a long wheelbase built up as a LeMans rep with the original engine uprated to 5.3 litres and putting out 200+ HP. We took possession of the car in South Africa where it was shipped for the October Tour with John White and did very well until we noted excessive oil leaking from the engine. Inspection revealed two block studs broken and several backing out. Evidently the block studs were not designed for such output and were failing at a rapid rate. So, we puttered on for the next 2000 miles at low rpm and with a large jug of oil in the back. Car went back to England for rectification and is now coming home at long last.