1953 Bentley R-Type Continental Garage-Find of the Original James Bond Q-Ship
Although this garage-find 1953 Bentley R-Type Continental Fastback was a no-sale at $1.1 million at the Gooding auction a few months back in Pebble Beach, it can be found for sale now at Gullwing Motor Cars in New York for $1,495,000. Yeah, that didn’t make sense to us either. But rather than talk about mundane numbers that have no real relevance to our everyday life, how about we talk about the history of this particular car, because it is quite sensational. It was originally ordered and purchased by James Bond creator Ian Fleming for his buddy Ivar Bryce, who was the inspiration of the character Felix Leiter, 007’s friend and CIA liaison in the fictional series.
It was discovered in a Hancock Park garage recently after sitting there untouched for 30 years.
Revivaler.com writes: “…when Ivar Bryce was in need of a suitable car for an “ex secret service agent” it was Ian Fleming who ordered it for him and specified its custom specifications; and this then became the James Bond car of Fleming’s later novels. Painted appropriately in Battleship Grey, (which Fleming and Bryce referred to as “elephant breath grey”) Ian Fleming’s choice of car was a 1953 Bentley R-Type Continental Fastback, with a manual transmission, lightweight seats, and custom fitted luggage. When purchased in 1953 this Bentley was eye-wateringly expensive, but in this car Fleming created a “Q-Ship” with power and performance belied by its sedate looking exterior, its grey colour ensuring it would not stand out in a crowd despite its pedigree. (In Australia co-incidentally the term “Q-Ship” was used to describe a car that looked ordinary and unmodified on the outside, but had extensive engine performance upgrading so it could drag off pretty much anything at the traffic lights).”
Be sure to check out the full story HERE, and it being offered for sale HERE.
