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June
29, 2012: Sold at Bonhams for £785,500
inc. premium
1928 Bentley 4½-Litre Supercharged
Tourer
Registration no. XV 1200, Chassis
no. NT3131, Engine no. NT3131S
Bonhams auction date: June
29, 2012
First shown at the 1929 London Motor
Show, the 'Blower' Bentley was developed
as a private venture by 'Bentley Boy'
Sir Henry 'Tim' Birkin in order to
extract more performance from the
proven 4½-Litre model, which
was becoming outclassed by its rivals
on the racetracks of Europe. His aim
was to produce a British car that
would enable British drivers to continue
to win races as spectacularly as the
4½-Litre that had won the 1928
Le Mans 24-Hour race.
The supercharger installation was
engineered by the brilliant Amherst
Villiers, who modestly claimed that
it was 'recognised in engineering
circles as a definite landmark in
automobile construction.' Unimpressed,
W O Bentley never supported the development
of the supercharged car and is quoted
as saying how much he 'disliked the
easy short cut provided by the supercharger,'
preferring to increase engine capacity,
as evidenced by the 6½-Litre
and 8-Litre cars, while reducing front-end
weight by using Elektron castings.
However, 'W O' did not control the
purse strings at Bentley Motors, and
the influence of Birkin, backed by
the fabulously wealthy Woolf Barnato,
saw the supercharged 4½-Litre
Bentley come to fruition.
Its potential was emphatically demonstrated
when Tim Birkin took 2nd place in
the French Grand Prix at Pau with
his supercharged 4½-Litre tourer
amid a field of monopostoGP racers.
The production cars were fitted with
an Amherst Villiers Supercharger Mark
IV, of Roots type with twin paddle
rotors, which drew mixture from twin
SU carburettors and was driven off
the front of the crankshaft, the latter
having been substantially strengthened
to accommodate the increased power.
With 9½lbs boost at 3,500rpm,
the blown Bentley developed 175bhp,
a healthy increase over the production
4½-Litre's 110 horsepower,
while with 10lbs boost at 3,900rpm,
182bhp was produced.
The first production model, chassis
number 'SM 3903', a sporting four-seater
bodied by VandenPlas, was exhibited
on Stand 130 at The Motor Exhibition
at Olympia in October 1929 and would
be retained as the Company demonstrator.
Although similar in many respects
to the standard 4½-Litre car,
the new model was immediately distinguishable
by the massive supercharger protruding
at the base of the radiator.
Just 50 production supercharged 4½-Litre
Bentleys were built to support the
homologation of five Birkin team cars:
among the few cars of their day capable
of 100mph on the open road, they have
always been regarded as the supercars
of their era. Motor Sport spoke of
the Blower's 'remarkable acceleration'
and 'ancestry of well-tried racers'
and called it 'a car for the connoisseur
of sporting cars...'
Known affectionately as 'Bertie Blower',
the car offered here was built at
W O Bentley's Cricklewood factory
on the standard 10' 10" chassis
and with engine number 'NT3131', the
81st of only 667 normally aspirated
4½-Litre models made. It was
then sent to North London coachbuilders
Harrison & Son who constructed
a Weymann-type saloon body, as commissioned
by the first owner Mr C A Cuthbert
of Compton in Guildford, Surrey. The
car was delivered in February 1928
and registered 'XV 1200'.
Mr Cuthbert kept the Bentley until
1929, selling it on the 4thJune to
a Mr Paul Gibbons of St John's Works,
Wolverhampton. In June 1931 Mr Gibbons
sold it on to Mr James Dance of Mile
Bush near Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire.
The last pre- war owner is listed
as Mr J A Barnett (in 1935) and the
next owner as one P A Chalk (1953-1956)
What happened subsequently is largely
unknown but during this period many
large saloons were scrapped and it
would seem that this fate befell 'XV
1200'.
By 1982 the car had been reduced to
a chassis, front and rear axles, and
a quantity of other parts. The original
Harrison body was missing, as were
several other key components. Douglass
Miller of Lundin Links, Lower Largs,
Edinburgh, who had the parts in a
shed at the back of his business premises,
advertised them for sale in the BDC
Advertiser of November 1982. Cedric
Cook bought them and set about sourcing
the missing bits. Provided with the
sales receipt, and with the original
chassis number established as 'NT3131',
the DVLA duly issued a V5 registration
document for the original 1928 registration
number 'XV 1200'.
In 1986 Mr Cook sold the rolling chassis
to a Mr George Dodds, who then sold
it on to Mr Dennis Keen. It was Dennis
Keen - an expert toolmaker from Chesham
in Buckinghamshire - who eventually
completed the three-year-long, 9,000-hour,
ground-upwards restoration that resulted
in 'Bertie' as you see him today.
Restoration works included shortening
the chassis to the 'Birkin Le Mans'
9' 9½" wheelbase, upgrading
the engine to full Amherst Villiers
supercharged specification using a
MkIV Roots-type blower, and extensively
re-engineering the car to match the
original Birkins specification as
closely as possible. The engine was
fully rebuilt with a new (Phoenix)
crankshaft, connecting rods, pistons,
valves, guides, rockers, camshaft,
water pump, front closing plate, oil
pump gears, damper and modern shell
bearings to the mains and big-ends
- all to 'Blower' specification -
and the engine number correctly stamped
'NT3131S'. (It should be noted that
the original engine 'NT3131' is recorded
as being returned to and then renovated
by the Cricklewoodfactory as a Service
Engine, and passed onto chassis number
'SL3053'). The original 'C' type gearbox
was replaced with the 'D' unit correct
for a supercharged car.
A new 'Blower' pattern front cross
member, dumb iron knuckles and cross
tubes were fitted to the chassis,
The magnetos and starter motor were
rebuilt and the carburettors refurbished
to original 'Birkin' specification.
The fuel feed has been converted to
twin electric pumps while the fuel
tank is a new 35-gallon Le Mans unit.
All other components were renewed
and replaced as necessary. Messrs
Metcalfe & Rosedale made and fitted
a new VandenPlas Le Mans replica body
to the shortened chassis. All instruments
were overhauled or replaced and then
set into a newly engineered aluminium
racing dashboard.
By 1990 and following three years
work, 'XV 1200' was finally fully
restored. For the last 20 years its
owner has travelled the world in 'Bertie'
with the Bentley Drivers Club on many
events including tours of Morocco,
France, Australia, South Africa, Canada,
New Zealand, the United Kingdom and
Continental Europe. Offered with restoration
invoices, current road fund licence,
MoT to November 2012 and Swansea V5,
the car continues to be maintained
in tip-top condition regardless of
cost by Elmdown Engineering and is
ready to go anywhere in the world.
'Blower' Bentleys rarely come on the
market and thus 'XV 1200' represents
a possibly once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
to acquire one of these charismatic
cars, presented in immaculate condition
throughout, 'on the button' and ready
to drive away.
Estimate:
£500,000 - 700,000
€630,000 - 880,000
US$ 780,000 - 1.1 million
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