1927 Bentley 3-Litre Speed Model Tourer

This racing 3 Litre Speed Model is the last works-entered Le Mans team car built for the 1927 Le Mans 24 Hours race. Driven by George Duller and Baron d'Erlanger, it was involved in the infamous White House Corner crash that occurred in the early stages of the race, when the entire Bentley team of two 3 Litre cars and a 4.5 Litre almost wiped themselves out, smashing into each other in the dark at 10 pm. This 3 Litre proved too badly damaged to continue, but the other 3 Litre, driven by Sammy Davis and Dudley Benjafield, went on to win the grueling race, a win that attracted worldwide publicity for W.O. Bentley's heroic company. During the race this car was given the nickname 'The Bitch' by Bentley's team of mechanics - although it's not clear quite why! After Le Mans, the car was repaired at the Bentley factory and was later raced at Brooklands in 1928 and then throughout the 1930s at the hands of privateer drivers, including H.R.A. Kidston, the younger brother of 'Bentley Boy' and Le Mans winner Glen Kidston.

Acquired by its current owner in 1998, the car has been recently restored to its 1927 Le Mans configuration, which includes the original dashboard and racing configuration, which includes the original dashboard and racing instruments and its battered, race-scarred, 25 gallon fuel tank.