1958 Bentley

• The fourth of just five examples built-in left-hand drive to Design No 7409
• Full ownership history from new to present day is known
• A late specification S Series with factory power steering and factory power hood
• Expertly restored by Vantage Motor Works in the early 1990s to concours standard
• Beautifully maintained and sparingly used since restoration
• Part of the highly prestigious collection belonging to Bob Lee of Nevada for 35 years
• Complete with handbook, tools and history file

Chassis No B122LFA is one of just twelve cars built by H.J.Mulliner to Design No 7409. Just five of the twelve cars were originally built-in left-hand drive, with this car being the fourth of the five examples produced. It was originally finished in Whitehall grey over rose beige with a red interior and hood and was supplied in May of 1958 by the Rolls-Royce agent in New York, J.S. Inskip to Mrs Edith du Pont Riegel in Delaware. Mrs Riegel was the great, great, great, great granddaughter of DuPont Company founder Mr E.I. du Pont. The family were great enthusiasts and collectors of significant cars, Mrs Reigel’s son Richard being a former owner of the famous “Tulipwood” Hispano-Suiza that recently won best of show honours at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 2025. Mrs Reigel is understood to have retained B122LFA for around two and a half years, trading it back to J.S. Inskip in October of 1960. Three months later it was sold to its second owner, Mr Robert Motherwell, the abstract expressionist painter of the New York School whose works now hang in esteemed locations such as the Tate Modern in London and the Guggenheim Museum in New York. In the late 1960’s the car was acquired by its third owner, Mr William J. Williams of Cincinnati who was the chairman of Western and Southern Insurance and later a co-owner of the Cincinnati Reds baseball team. By 1976 Chassis No B122LFA was still in the Cincinnati area and now owned by Mr Joseph Levin who reported the car to be in “mint condition with only 28,000 miles” from new. The next change of ownership took place in 1983 when the car became part of the large Rolls-Royce and Bentley collection belonging to Mr John Cory in New Jersey. In 1990 the car became part of the prestigious collection belonging to Mr Bob Lee of Reno, Nevada and shortly after acquiring the car it was sent to the highly respected firm of Vantage Motor Works in Miami for restoration. At this point it was fully restored with a change of colour to the period correct shade of shell grey, complimented by a red leather interior and hood, the trimming details matching the cars original specification. Being an FA Series car built in 1958, it also benefits from all the upgrades carried out on the S Series cars during their four-year production run, including larger carburettors, improved brakes and factory power steering. The car remained in the collection until recently and during this time it was sparingly used and shown at concours events, whilst being correctly maintained. This beautiful and very rare Bentley comes complete with copy chassis cards, handbook, tools and its history file. Chassis No B122LFA represents a rare opportunity to acquire a 7409 and in our opinion, it would be hard to find a better example. Please note that this motor car is currently situated and registered in the United States. It can be viewed by prior appointment which we would be happy to arrange.   

With the unveiling of the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud I in late 1955, came the simultaneous introduction of the Bentley S1, known at inception simply as the Bentley S Type. It was almost a carbon copy of the Rolls-Royce offering, identical in every way mechanically speaking, with a slightly adapted bonnet to suit the more curvaceous radiator shell of the Bentley. This was badge engineering at its finest and like the Silver Cloud, the S Type was tremendously successful, combining superb engineering with elegant coachwork. The interior was also beautifully appointed with only the very best materials, providing passengers with a highly luxurious and comfortable environment.

The major difference between the two brands however were when you consider the coachbuilt options on offer, with significantly more choice offered to Bentley buyers. On the standard S Type chassis there were some very attractive options. The policy of converting standard steel saloon bodies (mostly Rolls-Royces) into drophead coupes at the H.J. Mulliner works was introduced in the late 1950’s, giving their customers an even greater range of options. However, prior to this, a very limited number of all aluminium coachbuilt drophead coupes were produced by H.J. Mulliner, built to design number 7409 on the Bentley S1 chassis, with just twelve examples built.