1928 Bentley 6 ½-Litre Open Sports Tourer

Toward the end of the 1920s, open touring cars were not as popular as they had been, although there were a few exceptions. This Bentley 6.5 Litre, created for Major J.T. North, is one of only two Bentleys built by Barker & Company in this style. The elegant and curvaceous sports tourer body could carry seven passengers with its two fold-down occasional seats in the rear. After two additional owners in England, it was sold to South Africa in 1937 where, amazingly, it was fitted with a charcoal boiler on the luggage rack and converted to run on steam due to wartime fuel shortages. Happily, this apparatus was discarded after the war. The car remained in South Africa until 2010 when it returned to the United Kingdom to be restored and its original paint scheme of duck-egg blue with black fenders was discovered. Its current owner acquired the car in 2018, and the 2019 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance was the first time it was shown in the United States.

This example wears coachwork by Barker & Co. Coachbuilders. Barker would eventually body just 19 examples of the 6.5-liter chassis, making this selection even rarer. This open tourer has seating for seven, with two rear fold-down occasional seat. Of the 28 bodies Barker provided for W.O. Bentleys, nineteen were fitted to the 6.5-liter cars, and only two were 4-seat open tourers. This particular example is the only survivor.
When completed, this Bentley was used by HM Bentley & Partners as their Demonstrator. The buyer, a Mr. Major J.T. North took delivery eleven months later. Before coming to South Africa in 1937, it was owned by two other British custodians. In the early 1940s, on the Cape, it was owned by two young individuals in the South African Air Force. This was during the era of the fuel crisis, and its six-liter engine was very thirsty. On one occasions, while running on Aviation fuel, the car was impounded by local authorities. The resourceful Air Forcers later had it converted to run on wood, with its wood burner sitting where it luggage rack once was.

It would pass through several other owners before arriving into the care of a long term owner, South African Mrs. Alva Wilkins in 1964. Mrs. Alva would actively used the Bentley for the next two decades, including tours in both Australia and Africa. Its next custodian would keep the car for almost 30 years before the current owner negotiated to repatriate the Bentley from its long-term South African home.

When it arrived in the United Kingdom, it was given a rebuild. The car was rebuilt from the ground upwards, including total refurbishment of its Barker bodywork, removing and restoring the original aluminum skin from its original frame, carefully repairing it where necessary.

The original colors were duplicated: a light blue exterior with black fenders. The interior was done in royal blue Connolly surfaced dyed hides and the brightwork was correctly re-nickeled. It also received a comprehensive mechanical refurbishment with all mechanical items rebuilt to concours standards.

The car has its fully-matching numbers drivetrain.

By Daniel Vaughan | Aug 2019