Rare dismantled Bentley found in London town house restored to glory

Sophie Williamson-Stothert
Updated
Original pictures of the car. This 87-year-old vintage motor has been restored to its former glory and is going on sale for around £800,000 after its parts were found scattered throughout a pensioner's home. See NTI story NTIBENTLEY. The dismantled 1928 Bentley 4.5-litre Drop Head UP2100 was discovered in pieces at a three-storey town house near Kew Gardens in Richmond, London, after its owner Stuart Wallace passed away last year aged 75. He bought the car - which has a top speed of 95mph - as a student for £280 in 1962. But he had to stop driving it because he couldn't afford to keep gas-hungry engine running. The former English teacher didn't want to sell the classic saloon but had nowhere to store it so he took it apart and the components were "suspended in time" for 58 years. He even kept a log of every part, complete with photographs - with some being stored in jars of oil in the hope that one day it would be brought back to life. It was only after his death that Stuart's wish came true when daughter Bea Wallace-Hartstone called a specialist Bentley dealership who sent experts round to his house and what they found left them stunned. It took a team of 12 specialists from the Medcalf Collection based in Liss, Sussex, 10 months putting the pieces together and making it fully drivable again. The Bentley is now on display in the dealership showroom who are selling it on the family's behalf.


Newsteam

We all become attached to our memorable motors, especially when they have so many stories to tell.

One young woman realised this was the case for her late father, after she discovered what could only be described as an Aladdin's Cave of Bentley parts at his home in Richmond, London.

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