1952 Bristol 401 Sports Saloon Registration Number: UMG 898...

Hammer

£17,000

1952 Bristol 401 Sports Saloon

Registration Number: UMG 898
Chassis Number: Vin:401/1211
Recorded Mileage: 84,000 miles

- History file dating back to the 1970s
- In current family ownership since 2008

"It will sustain 80-90mph from dawn until the cows come home...built with all the painstaking care and thoroughness which have made the products of the City of Bristol famous throughout the world." - The Motor.

Very much a ‘connoisseur’s car’ with aircraft quality materials and construction, and discreet yet purposeful styling, Bristol's first model, the 400, was introduced after the close of WWII, based on tooling extracted from the BMW works in Eisenach after the war ended. The 400 combined BMW’s best pre-war efforts, a BMW 326 chassis installed with the legendary 328 six cylinder engines, wearing an aluminium body from the 327. 

The new 401 arrived in 1948, mechanically similar to the previous models other than an upgrade to triple Solex carburettors, increasing power to 85hp. The chassis was lengthened to accommodate the new Touring designed Superleggera coachwork, honed after hours of development in Bristol's wind tunnel. It had been intended that the Milan-based carrozzeria would build the first 200 cars, but this idea was abandoned after a mere handful of prototypes had been completed. At £2,270 it cost as much as an Aston Martin DB2, remaining in production until 1953, until being replaced by the new 403.

First registered in November 1952, this later 401 was acquired by our vendor’s father in around 2008 via an advert in the Bristol Owner’s Club newsletter. A regularly and often seen car in South East England, the 401 has appeared at many classic cars shows in current ownership. The Bristol has been maintained by leading specialist Spencer Lane-Jones Ltd. over the last 20 or so years. 

The accompanying history file contains an extensive number of bills for servicing, maintenance and parts going back from the late 1970s until 2022, totalling c.£25,000 or more. Also included is a separate file with a number of other documents such as a spares catalogue, concours entries (3rd in class), historic cuttings, extracts from the Tony Crook Bristol book and further photographs. Offered complete with older style V5 registration document, green folding log book and older MoT certificates, this is a nicely preserved example of one of the most interesting motor cars of the 1950s.