Thursday 23rd July 2015

Bentley 6.5 Supercharged Petersen Racer : YKYWT

One way to prove to those supercar show-offs who is really the boss?

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Special-bodied Bentleys are quite the thing at the moment, don’t you know. But none is quite as spiffing or as gloriously mental as this amazing Blower Road Racer.

Real men only need apply!

400hp of supercharged straight-eight power, skinny racing tyres and a hand-hewn body to die for – this one of the most fabulously exciting machines you could ever clap eyes on. The ‘Blower Road Racer’ was built in 2003 by Bob Petersen, renowned founder Petersen Engineering of Beaworthy in Devon. Petersen has even built one car with a 27-litre Rolls-Royce Meteor powerplant, but his 6.5-litre Blower Road Racer has to be the best Bentley special of all.

It kind of does what it says on the tin: gives you the rich feel of a blower Bentley racer for the road, with a certain nod to usability.

The chassis started off as a 1953 Bentley R-Type, while the engine is a highly modified Rolls 6.5-litre straight-eight military motor. With a Petersen BM supercharger strapped to it, it’s got fully 400hp on tap, giving it a sensational power-to-weight ratio of nearly 300hp per ton. And its 420lb ft of torque, presumably available from very low revs, should make it highly amusing, even with a Salisbury limited-slip differential fitted.

Originality - and everything else - be damned!

700x19 Dunlop racing tyres on 84-spoke wire wheels should ensure wide-eyed cornering excitement, and it’s even got fully adjustable suspension. Weighing just 1,350kg, it also boasts perfect 50/50 front/rear weight distribution.

But it’s the gloriously realised and heavily louvred aluminium bodywork that really sings its magic. It doesn’t take much to imagine you and a brave passenger sitting in those black leather buckets, surrounded by machine-turned aluminium, trying hard to coax the speedo to break its 170mph vmax calibration.

Described by the vendor as “in your face” and “a real road burner and hooligan’s toy,” it’s clearly a beast. It’s covered just 4,000 miles since it was built, and has had a recent £23,000 upgrade. But you’ll need to find 20 times that figure to get yourself into the finished article.

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BENTLEY 6.5-LITRE SUPERCHARGED PETERSEN RACER
Price: £440,000
Why you should: Nobody is going to argue with you...
Why you shouldn't: ...unless you mention the price

See the original ad here.

 

[uremaw]

Wow. I have a new 'lottery win' dream car.

[edinph]

uremaw said:

Wow. I have a new 'lottery win' dream car.

Yea, you're behind me in the queue! ;-)

[bertie]

edinph said:

uremaw said:

Wow. I have a new 'lottery win' dream car.

Yea, you're behind me in the queue! ;-)

And you're both behind me, fabulous thing!

[Kawasicki]

That is one mean looking machine

[Fittster]

Would the DVLA be happy about this? I thought they were clamping down on specials.

I'd be worried about ending up with a Q plate and facing an IVA.

[TurboHatchback]

If I was minted I'd have that like a shot, absolutely fabulous.

[PunterCam]

How good do those seats look??! Lovely thing.

[alpha channel]

Now that is simply wonderful. Get line boys it's this and the AM V12 Zagato on the Euro millions win shopping list (might even splurge and get the One-77 that the Zagato sellers have up as well , a garage line up of pure british[-ish] automotive filth).

[rpguk]

Doesn't really do it for me. The BMW style kidney grill at the bottom (I'm going to have egg on my face if that's an original Bentley styling cue ), the asymmetrical front, the bottom 'jaw' and blubber of fat around the waist.

Then it being a fairly new build takes a bit more of the magic away.

It's interesting and I'm sure great fun but my theoretical £400k would be going elsewhere.

Edited by rpguk on Thursday 23 July 17:51

[rtz62]

Hang on; so you're seriously telling me someone butchered a 1953 Bentley R-Type to come up with this? Really?
Sorry, to me that's like taking Shania Twain in for some 'body augmentation' and the end result looking like John Merrick after he has been on the 'Kate Moss Zero-Calorie Diet'...
Only my view of course, but I just find it horrible.

[stuckmojo]

Gorgeous

[Fartgalen]

Like it. I'd love to try, and perhaps buy it if I had the cash.
BUT ! Finally, when 'brought' should be used, they used 'bought' ! Aahm oot !

[sideways man]

That is right up my street, and beautiful also. Wonder if they will let me have a test drive??

[MikeGalos]

Thanks. I'll take mine in Bentley Racing Green.

[Snubs]

I'm not normally one for Clarksonisms but i'll make an exception here:

What a machine!

[soad]

Bentley 6.5 Litre Supercharged Petersen Racer

[FourWheelDrift]

rtz62 said:

Hang on; so you're seriously telling me someone butchered a 1953 Bentley R-Type to come up with this? Really?
Sorry, to me that's like taking Shania Twain in for some 'body augmentation' and the end result looking like John Merrick after he has been on the 'Kate Moss Zero-Calorie Diet'...
Only my view of course, but I just find it horrible.

They used an R-Type chassis, what makes you think they butchered a complete car?

[SirSquidalot]

Fanbloodytastic! Where are my flying goggles and hat?

[V8 FOU]

Ultimate Car.

Nothing else to add....

[Gorbyrev]

Someone ought to message a certain gravel throated Geordie and tell him there is a new daily driver available for him to enjoy taking to the shops.