Two classic 1930s Bentleys, a vintage Rolls-Royce, and Jaguar Continuation Series are the top British cars on offer at the Gooding Pebble Beach 2022 classic car auction.
Two very special Bentleys are the top British cars on offer at the Gooding Pebble Beach 2022 classic car auction and also the top British cars on offer at any Monterey Motor Week 2022 sale. Both come with a whopping estimate of $7,000,000 – $9,000,000: The 1930 Bentley 4 1/2 Litre Supercharged ‘Blower’ Sports Tourer still wears its original Vanden Plas fabric-covered Sports body while the 1931 Bentley Eight Litre Sports Tourer was built to specification for the company chairman, Woolf Barnato. The 1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Tourer (Estimate: $1,200,000 – $1,500,000) is a typical Edwardian Era beauty while the 1934 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Streamlined Saloon (Estimate: $800,000 – $1,200,000) wears unique alloy coachwork. Three Continuation Jaguars will be on offer.
Gooding Pebble Beach Sale 2022
Gooding & Company Pebble Beach classic car auction 2022: 19 and 20 August 2022 at the Pebble Beach Parc du Concours during the annual Monterey Motoring Week in California, USA.
Previous Gooding Pebble Beach sale results during Monterey Week:
| Year | Earnings ($ million) | Million-Dollar Cars | Lots Sold & Sell-Through Rate |
| 2022 | $109 | 28 | 135 of 158, 85%, average price of $810,758 |
| 2021 | $107 | 24 | 115 of 132, 87%, average price of $930,829 |
| 2020 | – | 5 | 55 of 77, 71% (online-only auction) |
| 2019 | $76.8 | 17 | 108 of 140, 77% |
| 2018 | $116.5 | 25 | 123 of 147, 84%, average price of $947,174 |
| 2017 | $91.5 | 22 | 110 of 135, 81%, average price of $832,670 |
| 2016 | $129.8 | 26 | 115 of 138, 835, average price of $1,128,606 |
The Pebble Beach auction record is $22,000,000 paid for the 1935 Duesenberg SSJ in 2018. It is the most expensive car ever sold by Gooding, the most expensive American car ever, the most expensive pre-war car ever, and of course the Duesenberg marque record holder.
Classic British Bentleys at Gooding Pebble Beach 2022
The 1930 Bentley 4 1/2 Litre Supercharged ‘Blower’ Sports Tourer (Estimate: $7,000,000 – $9,000,000) and the 1931 Bentley Eight Litre Sports Tourer (Estimate: $7,000,000 – $9,000,000) are the two the most expensive British car on offer at any Monterey 2022 classic car auction.
1930 Bentley 4 1/2 Litre Supercharged ‘Blower’ Sports Tourer
Production of the supercharged Bentley “Blower” began in June of 1929 in a push to elevate the marque’s success at important European racing events and compete with contemporaries such as Alfa Romeo, Bugatti, and Mercedes-Benz on the track. Over a two-year period, the English automaker built a total of 50 production “Blowers,” including this 1930 Bentley 4 1/2 Litre Supercharged ‘Blower’ Sports Tourer (Estimate: $7,000,000 – $9,000,000), chassis number SM3913. This genuine example of the 4 1/2 Litre Supercharged model was built in July 1930 and came equipped with an original “smooth case” Amherst Villiers Mk IV supercharger. Once the chassis was completed, SM3913 was sent to Vanden Plas in Kingsbury, UK, where it was fitted with their definitive four-seater fabric-covered Sports body style, and then finished in blue livery.
Delivered new to Gerard Bristowe Sanderson, a Scottish whisky scion based in Edinburgh, the “Blower” would make its way through the hands of several British collectors before making its way to the US in 1955. In more recent years, between 2014 and 2019, the “Blower” was completely disassembled and rebuilt from the frame up in an extensive, five-year restoration process carried out by R.C. Moss. During this time, SM3913 was also inspected by Dr. Clare Hay, who documented the car’s history and reported that the Bentley retains its original chassis, fabric-covered Vanden Plas body, and matching-numbers driveline.
Following its restoration, SM3913 debuted at the 2019 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance®, where it was selected as First in Class from a field of significant 4 1/2 Litres.
1931 Bentley Eight Litre Sports Tourer
Woolf Barnato, alongside company founder W.O. Bentley, was instrumental to the fortunes and fate of the celebrated Bentley legacy and marque. Serving as the company’s Chairman and largest individual shareholder during its meteoric rise, Barnato led the automaker to develop many of its most influential models, including the 6 1/2 Litre, 4 1/2 Litre, and arguably the finest vintage automobile ever produced, the coveted Eight Litre. Unveiled at the Olympia Motor Show in October 1930, the majestic Eight Litre was designed to carry the most luxurious custom coachwork and perform with greater comfort, smoothness, and silence than any previous Bentley had. The Bentley Eight Litre was the largest and most expensive chassis manufactured in Britain in 1930, and in all, just 100 were built.
The 1931 Bentley Eight Litre Sports Tourer (Estimate: $7,000,000 – $9,000,000) is one of the most historically significant Eight Litres in existence, as it was built to order for Chairman Woolf Barnato’s personal use. Built on a short-wheelbase chassis, numbered YR5095, this example is one of just 35 Eight Litres specified with a shorter 12′ chassis. Once completed, chassis YR5095 was sent to Vanden Plas, which constructed the handsome two-door, four-seat Sports Tourer representing the latest fashion from the renowned coachbuilder. The body was tastefully finished in Birch and Battleship Grey outside, with the interior trimmed in matching grey Connolly hides with hood, tonneau, and side curtains in grey mohair. YR5095 also sported the Barnato family coat of arms on each door.
In 1933, Flight Lieutenant Reginald Clarence Presland acquired the Eight Litre from Barnato and immediately put it to good use, driving it in rallies and displaying it at the occasional concours. Remarkably, the Presland family retained this example for 71 years, until it traded hands again in 2004. In 2005, the Eight Litre’s then-owner commissioned a complete, no-expense-spared restoration by leading marque specialist R.C. Moss, returning the car to its factory-correct appearance and specification, just as it was delivered to Barnato in 1931.
YR5095 was subsequently unveiled at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance® in August 2009, where it was awarded First in Class. Among the grandest of all classic Bentleys, this gleaming, concours-quality example is one of as few as 15 Eight Litres that have survived with their coachwork intact, and of those, none can compete with the elegant Vanden Plas Sports Tourer, custom-built for Woolf Barnato himself, as presented here.
Top Rolls Royce Cars at Gooding Pebble Beach 2022
The 1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Tourer (Estimate: $1,200,000 – $1,500,000) is a prime example of an Edwardian Silver Ghost. Chassis 6TB is an F-series Colonial model specified with a London-to-Edinburgh engine and wearing dashing torpedo coachwork in the style of Barker. Delivered new to its first owner in Australia, 6TB has a detailed ownership history from the start, as well as an unmatchable touring history as the three-time veteran of the grueling Alpine Trials Re-Enactment, among many other prestigious events. This beautifully maintained Silver Ghost wears deep red paintwork, offset by a gray top, lustrous black leather upholstery, tufted seat backs, and an Auster-type wind deflector screen.
The 1934 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Streamlined Saloon (Estimate: $800,000 – $1,200,000), chassis 86SK, is one of just 281 Phantom II Continentals built and features stunning one-off advanced Streamlined alloy coachwork by Park Ward Ltd. Debuted at the Olympia Motor Show in October 1934 on stand no. 24 as part of the Park Ward display, this chassis was delivered new to Miss Helen M. Pritchard of Streetly, England, and it remained in the country for 25 years until it made its way across the Atlantic.
Jaguar Continuation Series at Gooding Pebble Beach
Three Jaguar Continuation series cars are on sale at Gooding Pebble Beach offering collectors an opportunity to acquire a full set in one day:
| 1955 | Jaguar D-Type Continuation | 1,200,000 – 1,500,000 |
| 1963 | Jaguar E-Type Lightweight Continuation | 1,200,000 – 1,500,000 |
| 1957 | Jaguar XKSS Continuation | 1,500,000 – 2,000,0000 |
In 2020, RM Sotheby’s sold a similar set at the Elkhart Collection sale in Indiana for prices within the Pebble Beach estimates.
Monterey Week 2022 Classic Car Auctions
Top classic car auctioneers with sales during Monterey Week 2022 include Gooding (Pebble Beach), Bonhams (Quail Lodge), RM Sotheby’s, Broad Arrow, and Mecum.
Monterey Week 2022 Auction Results:
Monterey Week 2022 Auction Previews:
Monterey Week 2022 Pre-Auction Announcements
- Bonhams: 1938 Bugatti Type 57C Atalante
- Bonhams: 1963 Jaguar E-Type Lightweight Competition (ex-Brigg Cunningham)
- Gooding: Top Bugattis (incl: Type 57SC Atalante & Type 35 Grand Prix)
- Gooding: Top Ferraris — classics and modern supercars
- Gooding: Top British Cars (incl: Bentley Blower and Eight Litre Sports Tourer)
- Gooding: Wonder Collection including 1999 Ferrari 333 SP
- Gooding: 1930s Classics from the Vincent Estate
- Mecum: Ferrari Prototypes and Marmon Classics
- RM Sotheby’s: 1955 Ferrari 410 Sport Spider by Scaglietti
- RM Sotheby’s: Schumacher 1998 Ferrari F300
- RM Sotheby’s: Masterworks of Design Collection (1924 Hispano-Suiza H6C “Tulipwood” Torpedo, 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Special Roadster)
- RM Sotheby’s: 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Alloy Gullwing
- RM Sotheby’s: 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/C
- RM Sotheby’s: The Oscar Davis Collection of 27 vehicles valued at $100 million
Previous Monterey Week Auction Results
