Istorie
This Bentley S-Series, typical of Hooper's style at the time, was one of the sensations of the 1955 Earls Court Motor Show and was displayed on the coachbuilder's own stand.
Full description
The Bentley 'S' Series is a very attractive car with superb lines, appearance and finish. It costs a lot of money, but to the connoisseur who must have the best it is worth every penny. ”This will still be a glorious car in 45 years' time, just as my own 1911 Silver Ghost is today.” - John Bolster, Autosport, 1956.
Conceived as replacements for the ageing Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn and Bentley R-Type, the all-new Silver Cloud and Bentley S-Series were introduced early in 1955. They both had improved brakes and suspension, the latter featuring electrically controlled damping.
The automatic gearbox was now standard equipment, whereas the manual gearbox was only available on Bentley until 1957. Fast - over 100mph - relatively economical and cheaper to run than its V8-engined successors, the classically elegant S1 is arguably the most user-friendly of all post-war Bentleys.
Of course, this hand-built quality did not come cheap: Hooper's saloon on the 'S' chassis cost £7,074, an incredible 43% more expensive than the factory body.
Among the few firms that remained in business after WW2, surviving by the mid-1950s was Hooper & Co. London-based carriage makers to Queen Victoria and King Edward VII, Hoopew was arguably the finest of all British coachbuilders.
The Bentley was purchased new by the Sir Bryant Godman Irvine, the Member of Parliament for Rye and later Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons.
This car has covered 120.338 km.
