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The four-seat body dating from 1949 that was then on LM 1341 wasscrapped and replaced with a four-seat Vanden Plas body shortenedto fit the 9ft 9½in Speed Model chassis; a fold-flat windscreen andtwin aeroscreens were added, as was a new silencer, battery andtyres. A rebuilt and re-chromed 4½-litre radiator replaced the 3-litreunit in order to cope with the increased cooling requirements ofthe more powerful engine, the car was rewired and the twin SUcarburettors overhauled.Observed Mr Craig, all that work resulted in the Bentley beinglittle used during 1957 and August 1959, when it was acquired byRichard Rice of Surbiton, Surrey. He kept the car for only a matterof weeks before selling it to the well-known London Rolls-Royceand Bentley dealer Simmons of Rex Place, Park Lane, Mayfair, fromwhom Michael Banfield bought the car for £475 in October 1959.Despite Mr Craig’s assertion that the car was in perfect mechanicalorder when he sold it, during the 1960s Michael Banfield had theBentley thoroughly overhauled by marque specialists Hoffman& Burton, and a considerable amount of rectification work wascarried out, with particular attention to brakes and clutch. Thecorrespondence in the file – which includes a buff log book – gives afascinating insight into the cost of specialist work in the 1960s, whenthe hourly labour rate for a skilled machinist was just 27s 6d (£1.38p)!The history file with the car includes instruction books for 5 litreand 4½-litre Bentley, various receipts, V5 and copy of the savingsbook that Michael Banfield withdrew his cash from to purchasethe car in 1959!A much-loved and nicely mellowed Bentley, this ideal combinationof the sought-after agile Speed Model chassis with the power andtorque of the 4½-litre engine constitutes the perfect formula forenjoyable Bentley motoring!£220,000 - 280,000€270,000 - 350,0001Michael Banfield leads ‘WN 204’ to 1st in the Vintage Class,Pirrie Hall Fête, Pirrie Hall, Brook, Surrey, 11th June, 1962100 | Goodwood festival of speed