gs

The Real Car Co Ltd

sellertype

Trade

Posted

1 day ago

description

A chance to own a unique Bentley with great history and provenance which we believe holds a very significant place in the history of Bentley and Rolls-Royce Motors. Used as a test bed during WWII on official business, with every journey logged, it enabled the all new MKVI to be launched in 1946 when most manufacturers were re-hashing pre-war designs. The MKVI was closely followed by the Silver Wraith in 1947 and the Silver Dawn in 1949. We had previously thought that the B60 engine was a post war development but 3B50 was fitted with B60 engine No.4 originally, later replaced with No.11 as per logbook entry which is still in place to this day. We have copies of the three very comprehensive logbooks which not only record every journey but also who was driving and every modification carried out. These logbooks run from 1939 to 1950 during which time the car covered almost 200,000 miles before escaping the fate of most experimental cars by being passed to Rm - the Chief Engineer who took the car for his personal transport. The life of the car is well-documented and included with it are copies of books by Ian Rimmer Experimental cars and the booke titled Silver Ghosts and Silver Dawn which is the fascinating autobiography of W. A. Robotham. Also various other interesting related articles, magazines and books. During our ownership 3B50 has had a brake overhaul, re-cored radiator and numerous other jobs. Now very sound, a bit scruffy, running well, very much on the road and MoT tested until August 2024. Can be used as an oily rag as is or improved cosmetically if the new owner prefers.

Chassis No. 3B50 Reg No. RC 7338

The Automobile magazine, March 2024, has a seven page article on this car. Go to [Website URL removed] to buy a copy to read the full story!

Snippets: Code Name Rm

Rm, was the code name for William Arthur Robotham (1899/1980) - After serving as an artillery officer during WWI he decided that he wouldn't join his father's legal firm but to apply for an apprenticeship with Rolls-Royce (family connections played a part) and he duly started with the company as a "Premium Apprentice". In 1923 he became a junior technician under Ernest Hives (code name Hs) in the Experimental section where Rm worked on not just cars but also the aero section when needed. He was heavily involved in the road testing of the cars which meant that he travelled throughout Europe and whilst he was staying at the Hotel de France in Chateauroux he assisted Madame Olga Cousino Lyon whose Silver Ghost had "failed to proceed", her family's wealth came from silver mining & wine in Chile and home was a palace in Santiago! More local testing runs were held at Shotton Steel works in North Wales and he along with Geoffrey & Dick Summers would race their cars over a mile standing start sprint with a of a mile pull up section - the cars varied from an Aston Martin, Lancia, Hispano Suiza, Bentley, Vauxhall, Chrysler, Rolls-Royce - all in the name of performance evaluation. Such fun. Rm married twice - firstly to Winifred Thompson whose father Henry was a pioneer farmer with estates in Lincolnshire, Norfolk & Scotland & the owner of a Rolls-Royce Phantom I (78DC). One of Henry's Scottish crops was the Golden Wonder potato & as they were not available in the Midlands Rm's father-in-law sent him some 6 tons which Rm managed to sell to the Rolls-Royce staff! His second wife was Jeanne Ekins who used to accompany the famous Italian Tenor Beniamino Gigli on piano! After Rm's retirement he & Jeanne bought a farm in Kent and produced hops, potatoes, corn, plums, apples and pears.

Power-assisted Steering (PAS); V5 Registration Document; Previously Registered Overseas; Safety Belt Pretensioners

About Us:
The Real Car Company was established in 1987 by Ray Arnold & Ian Johnstone. It was a hobby that 'Got out of hand'. Our interest in cars of the type that we now sell goes back to our childhoods, and ownership back to the 1970's. Gradually more cars started passing through our hands, and by 1986 we had decided to make a full time occupation of buying and selling the cars that we love.

We started with a single car (all we could afford) which we sold quickly, and before we knew it we had 4 or 5 on our hands! This was alongside another business that we were involved in at the time. In the Spring of 1988 we gave up the other business, (exhaust systems), rented part of the premises that we still operate from now, and went full time.

We had a good start in the boom years of the late eighties, which set us up well enough for us to ride the storm of recession in the years that followed. As the years went on the number of cars going through our hands increased gradually, we built up a workforce, and we now carry a stock of around 40 to 50 vehicles and there are nine of us here. In 1999 we were awarded 'International Classic Car Dealer of the Year' by Classic Cars Magazine. The market for 'our' kind of cars is nicely stable, generally prices are creeping upwards all the time, and we feel that investing in a car - or cars - of the type that we sell is generally a great place to put your money. Don't do it just for investment, but you can get a great deal of pleasure from these vehicles, prices are - in our opinion - unlikely to drop, and you can't drive a share certificate! Some prices in the last three or four years have moved up considerably, and these cases have shown a tremendous return on investment.

Over the last fifteen years or so we have brought home several hundred cars from the USA, and we are always looking for more. If you know of a Rolls-Royce or Bentley anywhere in the world, in absolutely any condition, please let us know. Distance no object, commissions happily paid. We always particularly enjoy the 'barn finds'.



Opening Hours:
Mo: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
Tu: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
We: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
Th: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
Fr: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
Sa: Closed
Su: Closed

Why buy from us?
* Classic Cars
* Over 30 years in business
* Cars are physically at our premises
* Lovely roads to test drive on
* Our reputation

Year

1939

Mileage

0 miles

Body Type

Saloon

Transmission

Manual

Colour

Other

Seats

5

Doors

4

Luggage Capacity (seats Up)

475 litres

location

Bangor, Gwynedd