Bristol Aeroplane Company Ltd., Filton, Bristol. UK 1946 - 1960

Bristol Cars Ltd., Filton, Bristol, UK 1960 to date

Bristol were one of the foremost aircraft manufactures in Britain by the time the Second World war ended. They were not a natural car manufacturer, but H J Aldington who was chairman of Frazer Nash was and his brother Don was working for Bristol when they were offered the BMW engine as part of the war reparations. Frazer Nash had been very successful before the war with the BMW 328 sold in Britain as the Frazer Nash BMW which utilised this innovative 2-litre 6-cylinder engine with it's cross over pushrod design. The Aldington brothers recognised the benefits of being able to put such an engine into to production very quickly and persuaded the management at Bristol to commence limited production.

By July 1946 there was a Bristol car running with a body styled on the BMW 327 but with better streamlining, a benefit of having a wind tunnel at hand in which to carry out tests. The chassis was also based on the BMW with an underslung transverse leaf spring and upper wishbones doubling up as dampers to give independent front suspension..

Some closed and two drophead coupes had been made by the end of 1946, but the car was not officially launched as the "400" until the Geneva Motor Show in March 1947. In the UK it was priced at £2,724 which made it extremely expensive, but there was a massive shortage of new cars at that time and some 474 customers were prepared to pay for what was a well made and sporting car with the stamp of quality on it. Within a year the Bristol 401, with a longer chassis, was announced. It had a 2-door 4-seat body based on a design by Superleggera Touring of Milan, but with improved streamlining by Dudley Hobbs using the company's wind tunnel. At the same time the 402 coupe version was offered, but only 23 were sold, compared with 611 of the coupe.

The next model was the 403 of 1953 which was virtually the same car with an improved engine giving 100bhp which was a significant improvement over the original 85bhp. The market for these attractive but expensive cars was limited and only 281 were sold up to 1955.

The 404 short 2-seat coupe built on the Arnolt chassis was also available in 1953. It was the first Bristol made without the distinctive BMW radiator grille and although it was good looking and capable of 110 mph, compared with the Jaguar XK 140 which was faster and half the price, it was very expensive and only 52 were made.

In 1954 the 405, a new 4-door saloon, was offered with a Laycock de Normanville overdrive as standard and a boot that could be accessed from outside. It was also available as a 2-door drophead coupe by Abbott of which 43 were made. The total production of this model was 308 up to 1958 when it gave way to the 406 which had the original 6-cylinder engine enlarged to 2,216cc. An experimental 3,650cc twin overhead camshaft engine was developed but lack of funds prevented it from going into production. A much less expensive option was to use an already tried and tested American engine and so the 5,130cc Chrysler V-8 engine was chosen. This unit gave a reputed 250bhp and was used in conjunction with the then current Torqueflite automatic three speed gearbox.

This Chrysler engined car was the 407 with a rather boxy 2-door saloon body and the front suspension converted to a much lighter and more conventional double wishbone system with coil springs.

In 1960 the Bristol Aeroplane Company merged with Hawker-Siddeley which included the Armstrong-Siddeley car manufacturer. Plans to make the Bristol into a cheaper volume car manufacturer were opposed by Sir George White (grandson of the founder of the Bristol Aeroplane Company) and Anthony Crook who was the London agent for Bristol cars. They formed Bristol Cars Ltd. and secured the rights to continue building the cars as before.

There has been a policy of continuous improvement since the 407 and change of ownership so that the cars kept pace with modern developments without losing their individualistic appeal and 2-door bodies. Engine sizes were dictated by their availability from Chrysler with the largest being the 6,556cc of 1974 and fitted to the 411 Mark II . Power steering was introduced in 1966, dual-circuit brakes in 1968 and an optional turbocharger installation in 1978. The 412, a Zagato styled Targa top, convertible was made in 1976.

A new series was introduced in 1976 with the 603 a restyled saloon and since the 1980's they have been given the names of famous aeroplanes. The Targa became the Beaufighter and the convertible the Beaufort. The saloon was named after the Britannia and the turbocharged version was called the Brigand. As the Britannia was improved it became the Blenheim in 1993, the Blenheim 2 in 1998 and the Blenheim 3 in 1999 with a new 5,896cc Chrysler engine and 4-speed Torqueflite automatic gearbox.

Production figures are no longer disclosed and the cars are hand made to order.

Bristol cars were entered for competitions and a 400 finished in third place in the 1949 Monte Carlo Rally. They also entered a team of aerodynamic coupes for the 24 hours race at Le Mans in 1953 and 1954. Anthony Crook was himself a very competent racing driver in the 1950's who regularly outpaced some of the star drivers of the day. Bristol 2-litre engines were used by a number of sports and racing car manufacturers in the 1950,s, notably, Arnolt, Cooper and Tojeiro.

The Bristol marque is catered for by the Bristol Owners Club,

Secretary: Mr. G Hawkins, 1 Talls Lane, Fenstanton, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, PE18 9JJ

Bibliography:

Bristol Cars and Engines, by L K J Setright, published by Motor Racing Publications. 1974.

Bristol- The Quiet Survivor, by Charles Oxley, published by Charles Oxley. 1989.

Bristol, an Illustrated Histiory, by Charles Oxley, published by Crowood Press. 1990.

A Private Car. An Account of the Bristol, by L J K Setright, published by Palawan Press. 1999.