Descrição
H&H Classic Auction @ The Imperial War Museum, Duxford/ Cambridgeshire
20th September, 2023 10:00
1965 Bentley S3 Continental Flying Spur Saloon
Estimate
£110, 000 - £130, 000
Registration No: GYV 213C
Chassis No: BC106XE
MOT: Exempt
1 of just 68 right-hand drive S3 Continental chassis to be bodied with 'Flying Spur' coachwork by Mulliner Park Ward
Supplied new by Jack Barclay Ltd to Modern Engineering Holdings Ltd of Bristol on 20th December 1965
Extensively restored by marque specialist Healey Bros of Irthlingborough whilst in the thirty-year custodianship of R Kinsman Esq (1981-2011)
Current ownership since 2011 and attractively finished in Brewster Green with Cream leather upholstery
Introduced in Autumn 1962, the S3 Continental was notable as the last Bentley to be coachbuilt on a separate chassis. Powered by a 6230cc OHV V8 engine allied to four-speed automatic transmission and reputedly capable of nigh-on 120mph, the newcomer was ferociously expensive. One of the more striking designs available, H. J. Mulliner's 'Flying Spur' made precious few stylistic concessions to its four-door practicality. Inspired by the heraldic symbol bestowed upon the Scottish Johnstone Clan for helping Bonnie Prince Charlie escape the English on horseback, the model's distinctive moniker came courtesy of H. J. Mulliner's Managing Director, Harry Talbot Johnstone Esq. Understandably popular among contemporary celebrities such as Jayne Mansfield, Fanny Craddock, Sir John Mills, Harry Belafonte and Keith Richards, just 312 S3 Continentals were completed between 1962 and 1966. However, H. J. Mulliner only bodied 82 chassis to its design number 2011 (with a mere 68 of those being to right-hand drive specification). More expensive when new than an Aston Martin DB5 or Ferrari 250GT Lusso, the Bentley S3 Continental had more road presence than either rival.
Reportedly the sixty-sixth of the sixty-eight right hand drive examples made, chassis BC106XE was supplied new by Jack Barclay Ltd to Modern Engineering Holdings Ltd of Bristol on 20th December 1965. Thereafter, the Bentley is known to have passed through the hands of S. P. Broughton & Co of Cheltenham, William Arthur Hodgekinson, Mann Egerton, Anthony James Naple, Third World Investments (New Jersey, USA), Mr Sullivan, Robbins of Putney Ltd and Philip Howard Palmer before being bought by Rodney Kinsman. A renowned designer whose career saw him appointed a Fellow of the Chartered Society of Designers in 1983, an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Art in 1988 and a Royal Designer for Industry in 1990, Mr Kinsman certainly had an eye for the aesthetic and kept the S3 Continental Flying Spur for thirty years, 1981 – 2011. Entrusted to renowned marque specialists Healey Bros of Irthlingborough during that time, they carried out a series of major restoration works including: a thorough engine overhaul at 92, 000 miles (circa 26, 000 miles ago), extensive work to the sills and subsequent waxoyling of the chassis, a full repaint in Brewster Green and the installation of new Sundym glass all round. Appearing to pleasingly retain its original, and now gently patinated, Cream leather upholstery, ‘GYV 213C’ has been in the current ownership since 2011 (meaning that the car has had just two private keepers over the course of the last forty-two years). A Bentley Drivers’ Club member, the vendor describes the four-seater as being in ‘very good’ (bodywork, paintwork, engine, electrical equipment) or ‘good’ (automatic transmission, interior trim) condition. Among the most stylish and exclusive Sports Saloons of the 1960s, the S3 Continental Flying Spur still turns heads today. Offered for sale with V5C Registration Document and history file.
