Sold | 1954 Bristol 401

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£31,500 (Est: £20,000 - £25,000)

1954 Bristol 401

United Kingdom • 21 Feb 2026 • Lot 728

Vehicle Details

AI Listing Summary

This 1954 Bristol 401, a late-production model with Touring's Superleggera body, is offered from the Bunbury Collection. Having been restored in 2017 with significant investment, this right-hand drive vehicle is a reluctant sale due to the owner's ill health, presenting a competitive opportunity considering the car's condition and history.

Condition

7

The car was restored in 2017 by Andrew Fraser, with invoices for over £35,000 in labor alone. The listing recommends interested parties inspect the car and file. This suggests it is in very good condition with minor reconditioning done.

/ 10

Transmission:

Manual

Chassis No:

4011266

Odometer:

[Odometer Reading]

Reg Number:

JBO 137

RHD/LHD:

RHD

With the introduction of the 401 - the first of its exquisitely styled Aerodynes - Bristol began to move away from the pre-war design the company had inherited from BMW.

Carrozzeria Touring provided the Superleggera method of body construction that overlaid alloy panels on a tubular-steel framework, while the low-drag shape was honed in Bristol's wind tunnel.

It had been intended that the Milan-based Carrozzeria would build the first 200 cars, but this idea was abandoned after a mere handful of prototypes.

The 401 continued to use the BMW-based, 2.0-litre, six-cylinder engine with its ingeniously arranged, pushrod-operated inclined valves, paired to a 4-speed gearbox.

The 401's aircraft standard of construction did not come cheap however - at £2,270 it cost as much as an Aston Martin DB2 - and only 611 of these exclusive cars found customers between 1948 and 1953.

On offer here from the Bunbury Collection is a right-hand drive Bristol 401 that has been part of our vendor's family...