This is one of very few examples of the Bristol Beaufighter that were made, possibly just 29 left the factory, all fitted with a Rotomaster-turbocharged Chrysler V8 that could push the car to a top speed of 241+ km/h (150+ mph).
The styling of the Beaufighter was done by Zagato in Italy, and closely related to the earlier Bristol 412. The car features a distinctive squared off profile and a removable targa roof that stows in the trunk when not required.
Fast Facts – The Turbocharged Bristol Beaufighter
- The Bristol Beaufighter debuted in the early 1980s as a special version of the Bristol 412, a distinctive Zagato-bodied coupe powered by a hefty Chrysler V8, offering an opulent driving experience for those who could afford it.
- Bristol Cars was founded in 1945, right at the end of WWII, as Bristol Aeroplane Company executives realized they needed to start manufacturing something other than military planes if they wanted to stay in business and avoid mass layoffs.
- Bristol began producing a series of luxury cars, initially powered by BMW-designed engines, and later switching to large American V8s that provided the endless torque required to move Bristol’s vehicles as they became ever more luxurious, and as a result, ever heavier.
- The Bristol Beaufighter was one of the fastest and most powerful Bristols ever made. It was powered by a 5.9 liter Chrysler V8 that was fitted with a Rotomaster turbocharger, giving it a top speed in excess of 150+ mph. The engine produced so much torque that many drivetrain components needed to be replaced with those used in the 440 cubic inch big block Chrysler V8s of the 1970s.
- The car you see here is an early Beaufighter from the first year of production. It was given a comprehensive restoration in 2004, then it became a class winner at the Bristol Owners’ Club Concours d’Elegance in 2004 and then again in 2016. It’s now being offered for sale out of Somerset in England.
The Bristol Aeroplane Company
In 1945 in the waning days of WWII, when an Allied victory was all but assured, the executives of the Bristol Aeroplane Company met to discuss the future. The company had produced significant numbers of aircraft for both the First World War and then the Second, and it was clear that they would need to be building something other than military aircraft once the conflict was over, if they were to have any hope of survival.
The cars in the Bristol 412 series, including the Bristol Beaufighter, store a spare wheel under the left-side fender. The right fender lifts to give easy access to the battery.
The Bristol Aeroplane Company would take over the automaker Fraser Nash, then through the War Reparations Board, they acquired the intellectual property rights to manufacture three BMW automobile models and the BMW 328 engine.
Their first car, the Bristol 400 would debut just a year later in 1946, marking what would be the beginning of a 65 year run of producing some of the most unusual, and rare, luxury cars in the world.
The Arrival Of The Bristol 412
Arriving in the early 1975, the Bristol 412 would be the final car in that long line of 400 series models that had started with the Bristol 400 a year after the war ended. The 412 featured the sharp-edged styling that was so popular in the 1970s, and the body of each car was built by hand by Zagato in Italy before being shipped to England where Bristol would fit it to their own in-house developed chassis.
Power was provided by a Chrysler V8, initially the 6,277cc engine and then later the 5,899cc unit from 1977 onwards. These engines provided the exact kind of low-end torque that was needed to move the somewhat heavy 412 in a brisk, almost sporting manner.
Getting yourself onto the waitlist for a new Bristol was always difficult, it was also a challenge to wait as it would take a year or two (or more) for your car to arrive at the dealership. There was only one dealership (or sales showroom in company parlance), located on the corner of Kensington High Street and Holland Road in London.
Bristol Cars have long been favored by Britain’s upper classes. It was difficult just to order one, and the waiting list could stretch into the years.
The Bristol 412 was the successor to the early Bristol 411, and it was sold alongside the more traditionally-styled Bristol 603. There were many for whom the styling of the 412 was too avant garde, though the model certainly found its followers, and it would form the foundation of two cars to follow – the Bristol Beaufighter and the Bristol Beaufort.
The Turbocharged Bristol Beaufighter
The Bristol Beaufighter debuted in the early 1980s as a higher-performance version of the earlier Bristol 412. The additional performance came from a significantly modified 5.9 liter Chrysler V8 that was fitted with a Rotomaster turbocharger.
The power increase was so significant that the driveline needed to be upgraded to handle it reliably. The top speed of the car was now an autobahn-friendly 241 km/h (150 mph), making tours on the Continent both rapid and luxurious.
There is some conflict on just how many examples of the Beaufighter were made, some say fewer than 20 and some say approximately 29, but whatever the final figure, it’s clear that only a very small number ever left the factory.
The 1981 Bristol Beaufighter Shown Here
The car you see here is a 1981 example of the Bristol Beaufighter from the first year of production. It has a more interesting history than most, having been given a full restoration in 2004, followed by class wins in the Bristol Owners’ Club Concours d’Elegance in 2004 and then again in 2016.
Power is provided by a Rotomaster-turbocharged Chrysler V8 that could push the car to a top speed of 150+ mph.
It’s now being offered for sale out of Somerset in England on Car & Classic in a live online auction. It has 26,381 miles on the odometer, it’s finished in Dark Blue over Black upholstery, and it has had recent work to refurbish carburetor and fit newer improved starter motor.
If you’d like to read more about the car or register to bid you can visit the listing here.
Images courtesy of Car & Classic
Articles that Ben has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
