Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Rick]

Afternoon all,

Penman might like this ebay pick - a '55 Bristol 405 requiring its fair share of TLC. The sub-£10k price seems reasonable, and reflects both the condition and the fact that the original engine is, alas, long-gone. I'm not sure that I'd have plumped for a Rover V8 as an alternative, but I'm sure something more appropriate could be installed.

http://ebay.to/2h2ABpR



Thoughts?

RJ
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[alastairq]

Whilst the V8 theme is in keeping with later Bristol tendencies, I'm sure I would prefer a straight 6?
I'm not sure how heavy the original Bristol 2 litre engine is/was, but the noted lightness of the Roverick V8 must be in its favour?

Would having a lighter engine up front have an effect on the designed dynamics for the whole car?

For a 6 cylinder engine, I would be looking at the BMW range.

Which has a link to the heritage of the original Bristol 2 litre sixes?

[I recall looking over a Bristol some years ago, whose original Bristol engine was being experimented with...in the form of a set-and-a-half of bike carbs being fitted to bespoke manifolds....it actually looked very impressive with the row of little ram pipes they came equipped with...not sure how pretty the whole thing looked once the proper foam filters were added, as they should have been?]

I know little of Bristols as a whole, being only an admiring enthusiast.

In fact, the only Bristols I have had any sort of close relationship with, usually had a second deck on top [but not always] and a seating capacity way beyond that expected of the cars.

[Penman]

I suppose the V8 thinking is because by the 407 Bristol themselves had moved to V8.
But having seen a Triumph 2000/2500 (not sure which) in that red AC Greyhound which pops up at shows i think that is the way I would go,
I suspect power/weight ratio would be similar to the original
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Bristols should always come in pairs.

Any 2 from:-
Straight 6
V8 V10

[mikeC]

I agree with the idea of a Triumph engine; the Bristol developed 80-100bhp depending on which version, the Triumph 2000 had 90bhp as standard (95bhp in the Vitesse) and can easily be tuned to 140bhp+ if you want a bit more. Looks right, sounds right, got to be the way to go!
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in the garage: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
Recently departed: 1953 Lancia Appia, 1931 Austin Seven, 1967 Singer Chamois, 1914 Saxon, 1930 Morris Cowley, 1936 BSA Scout, 1958 Lancia Appia coupe, 1922 Star 11.9 ... the list goes on!