1952 Bentley Mk VI
“ An astonishing Mk VI. Presenting beautifully, and mechanically enhanced. Where legal, this is a genuine 100 mph+ motorcar. ”
Being offered as part of our curated auction in conjunction with the Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts Club Annual Rally at Kelmarsh Hall in Northamptonshire on the 26th – 28th June’26.

Background
The Bentley MK VI was the firm’s first to be built with in-house bodywork, albeit with the caveat that a few carefully vetted independent companies would still be able to provide bespoke coachwork for the well-heeled buyer. 

And they needed to be well-heeled because the coachbuilt Bentley Continental, which used a slightly uprated chassis, was not only the fastest four-door saloon of its era, it was the most expensive production car in the world.

But back to this, a car for the (relative) masses.

The Standard Steel came about as a result of the British Government threatening to withhold supplies of steel unless car firms were exporting at least 30% of their production, later rising to 50%, a target the coachbuilt cars couldn’t hope to meet.

Despite howls of opposition from diehard traditionalists, exports were healthy and production eventually stabilised at 80% factory-built cars with the balance being coachbuilt.

The MKVI remained in production between 1946 and 1952, making this example one of the last built before they replaced it with the R Type.

NB: As you might recall, Ian Fleming’s eponymous spy’s first car was a 1933 Bentley 4½ Litre. Destroyed during a chase with Drax in Moonraker, he used gambling winnings to buy a Bentley Mk VI. 

"The 1953 Mark VI had an open touring body. It was battleship grey like the old 4½ litre that had gone to its grave in a Maidstone garage, and the dark blue leather upholstery gave a luxurious hiss as he climbed awkwardly in beside the test driver."

The Bentley MK VI is, therefore, a genuine Bond car, one of the very few that Ian Fleming gave him to drive – and this one also happens to boast exactly the sort of modifications he would have commissioned. 

Overview
Finished in Tudor Grey with an Oxblood leather interior, the seller describes ‘NPO 999’ as “a motor-car that’s been driven rather than participated in concours d’élégance.”

And it drives rather well thanks to a combination of fastidious curation and a carefully chosen modifications that include a Norman Geeson high-ratio rear axle, a down-to-the-split-pins rebuilt of the 4.9-litre S1 Continental-specification engine, twin two-inch SU carburettors that send fuel to the engine via a Big Valve head, and modifications to the cooling system.

The result is a MK VI that can reach a little over 110mph, at which point the engine is turning over at a leisurely 4,000rpm. Perhaps more usefully, it is happy to cruise at 80mph all day, every day, something that presumably leaves drivers of modern cars dumbfounded. 

He’s a man who takes pride in doing things properly and insists on being able to drive his cars without having to make any allowance for their age. No wonder he’s been happy to keep it for the past 22 years, during which time he’s toured the north of Scotland including the Outer Hebrides, the Swiss and Italian Alps, and WWI battlefields and cemeteries. 

The past two-and-a-bit decades have also accumulated a LOT of paperwork; our photographs of the history file run to almost 150 pages but please do set aside the time to browse through them to fully appreciate what an incredible specimen this is.

Estimate: £33,000 - £38,000

View the current bid price HERE