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It is a "Bentley
3-4½".
The 3-litre chassis is no 324. This
chassis according to factory records
and as to Michael Hay in his: "Bentley:
The Vintage Years" was a TT chassis.
It had engine no 323 in it. It was
originally delivered in October 1923
to Fred Leyland (of shipping family?).
Body not known. The UK number plate
was CK 8172.
I have the factory records of this
car/chassis through 1937, when they
end.
The 4½ litre motor, PM 3254,
came from chassis TX 3247. This was
a Weymann saloon by Gurney Nutting,
delivered in August 1928 to A. Mayfield
with reg. no KW 4430.
Michael Hay in his "Bentley:
The Vintage Years" also states
"Rebuilt c:a 1937 - 9.? WB -
twin rear wheels - 2 seater…."
At some point the UK registration
plates changed to MWE 498. I have
photos of the car when A.J.M. Pierce
and G.P Nicol owned it and it carries
CK 8172 plates. A.C. Skerman advised
it to carry the same plates to the
BDC register. I have photos of Gordon
Lockhart racing it with plates MWE
498. Accordingly the registration
number would have been changed sometime
between 1949 and 1952, probably when
it was in the possession of Gordon
Lockhart.
I bought it in Sweden in August 1983
from Hakan Knutsson, where it had
gone after Jonathan Meadows death.
The chassis was shortened in 1937
and the 4 ½ lit engine was
fitted. Seems chassis was then shortened
to 8 foot 6 inches. It has since been
lengthened again.
It was raced in Weatherby in Yorkshire
in 1938.
The Bentley Club has records since
1947, and has the following entries:
- 1947 A.C. Skerman (owned it from
1943)
- 1948 A. Moorshead
A.J.M
Peace
- 1949 G.P. Nicol
- 1952 G.J. Lockhart
- 1959 I.H.C. Colquhoun
- 1960 - 69 R. Dennis
Harold
Webb (short period)
- 1970 R.J. Burrell (last entry
on the club card)
- 1974 J. Meadows
- 1975 - 1983 Hakan Knutsson, Sweden
- The car presently has Swiss Plates:
VD 310905. (Changed from VD 11674).
In addition I have been able to obtain
further information from various sources.
Source A.C. Skerman: Article
in Motor Sport, October 1944. Very
interesting article. Found in a breaker's
yard and put on the road. Photo in
article shows car with twin rear wheels
(Weatherby sand racing?). Assuming
the article was sent by Skerman to
the magazine in Sept 1944 and 18 months
was spent by him working on it, then
Skerman bought it at the breaker's
yard in March 1943. If it was in the
breaker's yard for 2 ½ years,
as he mentions, then it arrived there
to be scrapped about Sept. 1940.
Source A.J.M. Pierce: Sent
me 4 photos of the car when he owned
it.
Source Gordon McDonald: "G.J.
Lockhart was also called "Wee
Gee". Gordon was his name. Lively
little fellow Wee Gee was! He was
a pilot and flight instructor in Scotland,
somewhere on the East Coast and he
raced the car. I raced against it
on a track called Charter Hall."
Source Kaye Mc Cosh: "I
remember the car well. Lockhart won
many races with it. Heard he was sick.
Lives in Perth, Scotland". No
tel. number listed.
Source Joan Lockhart in Perth,
Scotland, who I called to find Gordon:
"I knew him, but he died 6 months
ago. He was a fantastic and active
man. Very funny and often the center
of attention. His father was a professional
golfer. Gordon was in submarines during
the war, raced cars, became a pilot
and was a flight instructor in Perth.
Retired and went into lobster fishing
3 years before he died in 1986, He
won the cup at Rest and be Thankful
and nobody took it away from him.
His widow lives in Anstruther, Fyfe
(fishing village)."
Source Helen Lockhart. (His
second wife - not the one he was married
to when owning my Bentley):
"First wife is in Africa, re-married.
Has a son 17, now in apprentice in
mechanics at Rolls Royce in Perth.
He did the Bo'ness Hillclimb, a record
he kept for 10 years." I followed
up with a letter. We had an exchange
and she sent me many photos and articles
and programs related to Wee G's racing.
Source Gavin Ogilvie: Sent
a photo of Wee Gee Lockhart doing
the Rest and be Thankful hillclimb
in Argyll, Scotland on July 5, 1952.
This raised his desire to someday
own a Bentley. He accomplished this
in 1972!
Source Randal Stewart: "I
knew of your car and heard about Wee
G. Lockhart, who I believe did a lot
of the modifications."
Source Tom Pasmore: "I
recollect that it was a black 2-seater
with a pointed tail. Roger Dennis
raced it at Silverstone and won his
race …with 19 inch wheels at
the rear and very wide 16 inch at
the front".
Source Roger Dennis: "I
won the 1964 Novices race with it
at Silverstone. From memory I had
19 inch 6.25 on the rear and I think
there was a 3.53 rear axle. Did the
Brighton speed trials with it - did
35.2 sec in 1962 and did even better
the following year. I went on honeymoon
in it. I thought I held ownership
for nearly 13 years. I fitted a RR
3909 cc engine in it, with a Borg
Warner automatic gear box, but was
turned down for racing it in the 1967
Silverstone event".
Source H. Webb: " I can
only remember that I bought it from
somebody who raced it - probably from
St. Albans".
Source R.J. "Bob" Burrell,
whom I visited: "When I bought
the car it had a 4 lit. Rolls Royce
engine with automatic gearbox in it.
It was for sale for Pounds 2000, but
I traded it against a RR 20/25 and
some bits. I thought I was trading
for the chassis with the RR motor.
When the deal was done, I was advised
to pick up the motor 'down in the
shed'. This was the 4 ½ lit.
motor PM 3254 that had been put in
it in 1937! I owned the car earlier
than 1970, which the Club records
indicate. I know that it had been
raced before at Weatherby, where they
used to do sprints on the beach before
the war. It has the late, heavy crank
engine, which was the base for the
supercharged - almost un-bustable.
The gearbox is one of their very early
racing boxes. It's priceless really
and one that came out of their racing
cars. I bought it from Harold Webb;
he supposedly bought it from R. Dennis.
I did most of the work on the body
(as it is today). When I got
it, it had a rather bad, partly homemade
body on it, with a sloping, pointed
tail - rather diabolical. I have retained
the tail and it is now on my 4 ¼
Bentley Special that I am racing.
I really set it up for racing and
won 20 races in it. The axle ratio
is the best for racing, being 3.5
to 1. I did have problems with the
clutch because of the terrific torque.
It has got all the best bits that
car. I had some good races in it -
it was good on the big circuits."
He gave me a photo of him and the
car at Silverstone as well as 3 slides.
He also gave me a painting of the
car, as it looked in the early 70-ies.
Source Jim Abbott: "Jonathan
Meadows owned the car. After his death
it went to Sweden. He also owned the
Bentley "Blue Bell", now
owned by Llwellyn. While Meadows did
not race it, it was definitely raced
in 50-ies and possibly 60-ies. I used
to prepare the car that generally
competed against it. I think the radiator
was tapered and I believe it was originally
a red label (short chassis). (It
has a red label on the radiator presently).
I have seen the car go heavy into
a bank at Silverstone in the 50-ies
and bent the front chassis. It was
straightened by the right people and
had no problem thereafter. My son
Tim drove it and it was the first
Bentley he ever drove. We tried to
sell it for Jonathan Meadows in the
70-ies, but could not find a buyer
for Pounds 5000!"
Source Article in Motor June 22,
1974: Sale at Alexandra Palace.
Photo carrying plates MWE 498.
After I bought the car in Sweden it
was "restored" by Ulf Smith.
The motor was "seen to".
The spare wheel was transferred from
the rear position behind the petrol
tank to the left side. It was repainted
from the "Racing Green"
to dark Blue. The chassis measured
a fraction above 9 feet, when I took
it over..and still does. The rear
mudguards were angled forward.
In 1986 the motor, as well as the
drive train, were rebuilt in CH. Found
the block to be shaven off over 0.5
cm. Pistons were larger than standard,
round on top. It has two SU carbs.
In 1988, Tim Abbott in the UK re-built
the engine and set it up for racing,
with all the latest parts. A Phoenix
crank was installed, counter balanced
and converted to shell bearings, with
a new Phoenix camshaft with steel
rockers. Pistons were Cosworth forgings
machined by Omega, new rods, etc.
He also installed one of his lightweight
clutches, as well as an AP "banana
exhaust".
It has been raced by me at: Nurburgring
(several times), Hockenheim, Monza,
Spa, Silverstone, Oulton Park, Monthlery,
Dijon, Most (Tchechoslovakia), Ligniere
(CH) and I was Swiss Historic Race
Champion in 1989 with the car. I have
also done three historic Mille Miglias
with it.
I have done hill climbs at various
events in France, Italy, Germany and
Switzerland.
I have participated in "rallies"
in Switzerland, Sweden, Monte Carlo,
France, Holland, Sardinia, Mont Blanc,
Bourgogne, Dolomites, Germany, Italy,
Portugal and New Zealand
The engine was completely rebuilt
in 2005/2006 because of a chipped
valve. A new radiator core was installed
in the UK in 2005. New wheels were
put on in 2006. The rear axle was
rebuilt with all new moving parts
in 2007.
The "holes" in my history
relates to: A. Moorshead, G.P. Nicol,
I.H.C. Colquhoun. I sure would like
to know more about the years between
1937 and 1940. |
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