1955 Bentley R-Type Continental Fastback

This 1955 Bentley R-Type Continental Fastback is finished in Maroon with Putty hides and optioned with a chromed side-spear molding, twin driving lights, and whitewall tires. The 4,887cc overhead valve inline six-cylinder engine has twin SU H6 carburetors and delivers 172 horsepower. There is a four-speed manual gearbox and four-wheel servo-assisted drum brakes.

This Bentley was delivered in January of 1955 via New York's J.S. Inskip to 21-year-old Peter van Gerbig at his 5th Avenue apartment in Lenox Hill. After six years of ownership, the car was sold to Stephen Wheelock, who drove the car in New York before shipping it home to his native Scotland. When Mr. Wheelock passed away in 1976, the car was inherited by his brother, Thomas, who sold it in 1981 to William de Segundo, of Surrey, UK. The Bentley remained with Mr. de Segundo for twenty-one years and during that time an additional 8,000 miles were added to the odometer. Mr. de Segundo loaned the fastback to the Motor Museum of Bentley in Bath, UK, for a term, and participated in the 50th-anniversary celebration of the R-Type at Silverstone in 2003.

The current caretaker acquired the R-Type in early 2011. Currently, the car has just over 50,000 total miles on its odometer.

By Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2022