Among the final ‘W O’ cars built at Bentley’s famous first factory in Cricklewood, chassis number VA4079 offered here started life as a 4-Litre model. Just 50 examples of its kind were made, of which only eight featured the longer 11-foot 8-inch chassis. Even among that handful, this car was born unique. According to an accompanying copy of the factory build sheet, and as referenced in Dr Clare Hay’s Bentley: The Vintage Years, it was ordered new by N H Brownstone and sported one-off Drop Head Coupé coachwork by Vanden Plas. This most notably included helmet wings, more akin to an H.J. Mulliner & Co., Ltd design, rather than running boards. Sporting a raised rear deck in line with the bonnet, it was completed in Black with fine Red line and red wheels on 21 March 1932.

Wearing the registration number “GX 9”, chassis VA4079 is recorded to have later been owned from 1935 by W R Wagman and from 1958 by K H Bird in Hampshire. However, it would fall into a state of disrepair over the coming decades. Come the late 1980s, William Kamper had tasked Bill Sykes with sourcing either a 4-Litre or 8-Litre car. Fitting the brief, this Bentley was bought by Kamper in non-running condition and submitted for a three-year rebuild. Marque expert Roger Wing reportedly constructed a new ash frame, while Peter Claridge crafted new bodywork in the fashion of the legendary Bentley racer “Old No.1” from its 1932 specification that most notably competed at the Brooklands Motor Circuit.

Since this 4-Litre model shared its platform with the leviathan 8-Litre, as part of the restoration, the Bentley was fitted with its current 8-Litre engine. The motor is numbered BA2600; this unit started life in chassis BA2593, as originally built by Freestone and Webb for a Mr F Lord in 1929.

In 2004, chassis VA4079 was acquired by Mr Mike Bailey. He entered the car into the Bentley Drivers Club meeting at the Olde Bell Hotel, Hurley in May 2006 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the BDC’s inaugural run from the venue. As if doubling the displacement had not been suffice, Mr Bailey then saw fit to further upgrade the powerplant.

Having already mechanically maintained the Bentley from 2006, vintage marque specialist Neil Davies of Watford was tasked with overhauling the engine and fitting a Blower. In April 2013, a new cylinder block was built up and mated to an original-pattern Amherst Villiers Mark IV Roots-type supercharger over the front axle. This followed the addition of new wings over the front wheels and the installation of an aluminium engine-turned fascia. Over the following two years, Davies rebuilt the clutch and fitted a new radiator and front wheel bearings. Invoices, available on file, for the complete works total more than £270,000.

Acquired by the consigning owner in February 2019, the Bentley features twin aero screens in addition to a fold-up windscreen, a tonneau cover, and folding black fabric roof. Perhaps unsurprisingly the vendor, a vintage car collector, is quick to praise chassis VA4079’s incredible turn of pace, reporting wheel spin up to three-digit speeds.

Boasting formidable performance and refinished in red over burgundy hide to pay even greater tribute to “Old No.1”, chassis VA4079 has proved itself as an ideal companion on long-distance tours, having previously taken part in the 2007 edition of the Debrett’s Classic Car Rally from London to Paris via Reims. It is now ready to thrill on the open roads under the care of a new custodian.