Bentley to revive classic Blower in new continuation project

Bentley is the latest firm to recreate one of its past icons, announcing plans to build 12 new examples of its famous 4 ½-litre ‘Blower’.

Originally produced in the late ‘20s for racing driver Sir Tim Birkin, just four examples of the 4 ½ litre were built. One example, produced in 1929, saw action at Le Mans that same year.

It’s this particular car that will serve as the inspiration for these 12 new recreations of the Blower — pegged at this figure to commemorate the total number of races a ‘Blower’ entered.

As part of the design process, the original car will be disassembled by Bentley with each individual part then catalogued and scanned in 3D in order to create a digital model. The firm will also be using original moulds and tools alongside modern production methods to produce 12 identical sets of parts before assembly.

Bentley says the reproduced examples will be almost identical to the original car, with minor changes made to address safety concerns.

The firm’s custom projects arm, Mulliner, will be handling the project — with a two-year production run planned. Pricing is said to be ‘on application’.

Adrian Hallmark, Bentley chairman and chief executive, said: “As we continue to commemorate 100 years of Bentley, we are combining a look to our past with the very latest digital technologies and techniques to create something truly extraordinary.

“The four Team Blowers are the most valuable Bentleys in the world, and we know there is demand for genuine recreations that can be used, enjoyed and loved without risk to the prized originals.”

Bentley’s continuation project is similar in spirit to recent plans from fellow British firm Aston Martin, which will produce recreations of its DB4 GT Zagato and ‘Goldfinger’-spec DB5. Jaguar has also previously undertaken similar projects, putting ‘new’ examples of its XKSS, D-Type and Lightweight E-Type into limited production.