1960 Bentley S2 - S2 Standard Saloon

Delivered to famous photographer Shirley C. Burden

The first Bentley model to feature the new L-Series eight-cylinder engine

A rare left-hand drive model ordered with optional air conditioning

An exceptionally attractive colour combination

When Bentley unveiled the S2 in the autumn of 1959, its clientele had to look rather closely to spot the progress. Outwardly, the newcomer differed little from its predecessor. The familiar body remained, as did the imposing radiator grille, sweeping wings and that air of dignified solidity which made it quite clear that restraint at Crewe was never to be confused with modesty. The real news was under the bonnet.

There, the straight-six that had been steadily developed over decades had finally had its day. In its place came an entirely new 6,230 cc aluminium V8. How much power it produced Bentley, like Rolls-Royce, declined to say. Enough, at any rate, to move the two-ton-plus saloon with an ease the old six-cylinder engine had increasingly struggled to provide. More importantly, the V8 offered ample torque, exceptional refinement and plenty in reserve for the future. That its basic design would remain with Bentley and Rolls-Royce for many decades to come was something nobody could have known in 1959.

Power was transmitted as standard through a four-speed automatic gearbox. Power steering was now part of the specification too, making the large Bentley considerably more manageable than its dimensions might suggest. The chassis, with independent front suspension and a live rear axle, remained broadly familiar. Revolutions were not, after all, part of the programme at Crewe.

As with the S1, there was the factory-built Standard Steel Saloon. For those able to afford spending still more, H.J. Mulliner, Park Ward, James Young and other coachbuilders offered individual bodies. Then there were the Continental versions, fast grand tourers for customers who preferred sitting in the front rather than the back. Under the Rolls-Royce umbrella, Bentley was no longer quite the sporting marque it had been in the 1930s, but neither had it entirely forgotten its past.

By 1962, 1,863 standard-wheelbase S2s had been built, together with a further 57 on the long-wheelbase chassis. In addition came 388 S2 Continentals. The externally modernised S3 followed. The S2 therefore remained in production for just three years, yet technically marked a decisive turning point. On the outside, every inch the old gentleman; beneath the bonnet, the heart of a new generation was already at work. That is how understatement is done. Almost everything had changed, without anyone making much of a fuss about it.

This Series B Bentley S2 went to the United States in 1961 and was therefore left-hand drive. Its first owner, Shirley Carter Burden, a noted photographic artist and campaigner against racism, lived in sunny Beverly Hills and accordingly placed some importance on air conditioning and electric windows. Although the car had already been completed in August 1960, it did not arrive in California until the first days of 1961.

Later, the Bentley swapped one American coast for the other, where it spent the next chapter of its motoring life. Being left-hand drive made it rare; being well preserved at the same time made it rarer still. That was reason enough for its owner to bring it to Austria in 2013.

It has yet to be registered here and, after a lengthy Sleeping Beauty slumber, requires a careful recommissioning before this Bentley can once again demonstrate its qualities where they matter most: on the road.