1924 Bentley 3-4½ Litre

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  • Sold new to Major EG Thomson of Edinburgh, of Ecuire Ecosse fame
  • Owned for more than 50 years by the Martin family
  • Upgraded to 4.5 Litre spec using original crankcase
  • Extensive history file includes factory records and buff logbooks
  • Fully restored by Paul Grist to his ‘ultimate’ period look and specification


VEHICLE DESCRIPTION

This original Bentley 3 litre Speed Model Tourer – since uprated to 4.5 Litre – was sold new to a highly notable name in the history of Scottish motorsport, later spent more than 50 years in the ownership of a single family, and more recently has benefitted from a bare chassis restoration and upgrade to 4.5 Litre specification.


According to the factory service records, chassis number 804 was built in late 1924 and supplied new via John Croall – a coachbuilding business based in Castle Terrace, Edinburgh– with, it’s believed, a sporting tourer style of body. Its first owner was Major EG Thomson, a director of Ben Line Steamers whose family home was in Peeblesshire. Thomson was a keen motor racing enthusiast who later famously provided financial backing for the Le Mans-winning Ecurie Ecosse team.


First registered DS 1453 by Peebles County Council in February 1925, the Bentley was built to Speed Model specification on the 9ft 9.5in wheelbase, with the high-compression, twin-carburettor engine. Subsequent owners listed in the factory records are H Bower and L Geary, the latter being based in Middlesex.


The logbooks then show that, by 1937, it was owned by George Brown in Birmingham, before passing to Michael Barnes of Staffordshire in 1938, then Richard Grummit of Nottinghamshire in 1946. 


Correspondence from the Bentley Drivers Club shows that the car was first recorded with it by Guy Porter in 1948, when the body was described as being a ‘VdP tourer’. It then passed through two more owners before being bought in 1954 by William Martin of Berwickshire – and it would remain in the Martin family for the next 56 years, until 2010. 


Bill Martin was a Bentley enthusiast who served as Secretary to the Winfield Joint Committee, which organised races in the Scottish Borders at the Winfield and Charterhall airfield circuits. He regularly used DS 1453 in Bentley Drivers Club events and passed the car to his son in 2001.


Only in 2010 did the Martin family decide to part with their beloved Bentley, and it was considered the perfect candidate for the world renowned restorer Paul Grist to acquire and apply his magical touch to and incorporate the many decades of experience in providing an amazing visual and aged presence, incorporating many period features to provide possibly the ultimate look for a 3 litre Speed model, with the added benefit of taking the opportunity of uprating the original engine to 4.5 Litre specification, with components supplied by marque specialist NDR. The engine work retained the original crankcase, so the car retains its matching-number engine status, and the tourer body was fully rebuilt as required by Paul and his team.


This striking and extremely usable Bentley is offered for sale with an extensive history file that includes invoices dating back to the 1950s, tax discs to the 1940s, a copy of the factory service records, and a collection of logbooks tracing its owners back to the 1930s.


MODEL HISTORY  

From victory at Le Mans to the patronage of royalty and aristocracy, it was the 3 Litre that laid the foundations for the Bentley marque. The first model to be offered by WO Bentley’s new company from its launch in 1919, it used a four-cylinder monobloc engine that was advanced for its time and featured 16 valves, an overhead camshaft and twin plugs per cylinder. 


Various combinations of chassis and engine tune were offered from the beginning of 3 Litre production in 1921. The majority of the 1622 cars that left the Cricklewood factory were the Blue Label model, which was offered with a wheelbase of either 9ft 9.5in or 10ft 10in, and had a single Smiths carburettor.


The Red Label Speed model used only the shorter 9ft 9.5in chassis and featured a higher-compression engine running on twin ‘sloper’ SU carburettors. And finally there was the Green Label Supersports model, which was built in tiny numbers on a 9ft chassis and was guaranteed to offer 100mph performance.


Motor racing was part of the Bentley story from the very beginning, and in 1923 Frank Clement and John Duff drove the latter’s 3 Litre in the first running of the Le Mans 24 Hours. They returned in 1924 and won outright – the first of Bentley’s six victories at La Sarthe. 


Thanks to its combination of robust engineering and sporting pedigree, the Bentley 3 Litre has become one of the most coveted of all vintage cars, and is supported by an enthusiasticnetwork of clubs and specialists. With the engine from a 4½ Litre fitted, you get the best of both worlds – the agility of the 3 Litre, but with the additional power offered by the 4½ Litre.