If I should ever be tempted to buy a Bristol, it is NOT because of the characteristics of the car itself, but because of everything that cars of this type stand for. Bristol was a car manufacturer most out of the ordinary.
Same concept for 66 years
The Bristol Blenheim was one of the last models. The car in the pictures was produced in 1998, but in many ways seems older than other cars from the same era. The bodywork is handmade in aluminium, mounted on a separate frame. Bristol Blenheim, and all previous models back to 1945 have exactly the same wheelbase. The first model, the Bristol 400, was based on a stretched version of the pre-war BMW 328. If you look closely at the Bristol Blenheim's long front section and coupe placed over the rear axle, you can sense the features from the cars of the 1930s. The huge front section has room for standing spare wheels in the direction of travel. The Bristol Blenheim is as wide as the Ford Scorpio, but has a 12,5 cm narrower track width at the front and 10 cm narrower at the rear. In many ways, it can look as if Bristol built modern cars on an old platform, although drivetrains, brakes, suspension and steering etc. are continuously upgraded. My point is that Bristol in no way comes across as beautiful, modern or harmonious. Nor do they appear to be well-built. When I get close to the cars, I find uneven lines between the body joints. The Bristol Blenheim was not perfect, but still one of the most expensive cars on the market when it was built.
A single sales office
Bristol Cars sold cars all over the world, but only had one sales office. It was in Kensington High Street. I have passed it many times but never stepped inside. All sales went through the firm's undisputed leader, --Tony Crook, former RAF pilot and racing car driver, who took over the company in 1960. There are several stories about him. Among other things, he is said to have paid a homeless vagrant for several years to hang around and cast a negative light on Rolls-Royce at the London Motor Show. In one case, he is also said to have dressed up as an Arab oil sheikh and tried to buy up all the cars on Aston-Martin's stand, so that they would not have any cars to exhibit. Tony Crook was also famous for refusing motoring journalists to test drive his cars. Outspoken journalists, such as Jeremy Clarkson, was refused entry to the sales premises. Nor were any production figures given to the press. To get on the customer list, you had to get on good terms with Tony Crook. It is said that he had a Scalextric car track in the office where he challenged customers to races.
Overtook by time
How long can you keep building old fashioned cars by hand?
In 2004, "Bristol Fighter" launched. It received a shorter wheelbase, which indicates that changes were made to the frame. From 1961, all Bristol cars were fitted with powertrains from Chrysler, V8 engines with 3-speed automatic gearboxes. But the Fighter instead got Chrysler's V10 engine - the same as in the Viper. The body received a completely new "look" with gull-wing doors and a very futuristic rear section. Nobody knows exactly how many cars were produced until production ceased in 2011, but it could be 7-13 cars. The problem was not low demand. Tony Crook argued that Bristol Cars would always sell fewer cars than people were willing to buy. Hand-built cars are known to require many hours, and the Bristol Fighter may have required more hours in production than previous cars with simpler bodies. When the company was placed under administration in 2011, 22 employees were dismissed. I have tried to find the assembly hall on old maps above Patchway, Bristol, without success. Bristol Car's office was located above a laundry, but the production hall had no frontage to the public road. Already one year after the closure, the building mass had changed. You could say that Bristol Cars were anonymous, even in their own local environment.
To Windlesham
In 2011, the last Bristol rolled out from Bristol city. The company was acquired and incorporated into KamCorp, a company owned by Kamal Sidiqi, which had previously acquired the British company Frazer-Nash Research Limited. Just before Kamtorp bought Bristol Cars, gas company BOC (British Oxygen Company) had moved out of its fancy headquarters in Windlesham, Surrey. Kamal Sidiqi bought the place to realize his innovative ideas there. The remnants of Bristol were moved to the parking basement of the new headquarters. One of Sidiqi's projects was a brand new 2-seater sports car, called Bullet. It was to be a car reminiscent of the AC ACE (for those who know what that is). But Bullet barely managed to be presented to the media before Kamkorp went bankrupt - and the building mass in Windlesham was left unattended. Most people at the time had no idea where the remains of Bristol had gone until some young people got in and found half-finished cars, production tools, and more. Getting into abandoned buildings and sharing photos on social media is called "urbex" - urban exploring. Now everyone found out where the remains of Bristol were. You could see the prototype Bullet, semi-finished cars, spare parts and perhaps the most important – wooden trestles that could be used to design new body parts for earlier models of Bristol.
Then Gordon Murray appeared
Gordon Murray was a former director of McLaren and was behind the development of the McLaren F1 – the fastest self-aspirating sports car of the time. Murray is currently developing new supercars under the GMA - Gordon Murray Automotive brand. Last year he presented the GMA T.50 – developed in the same spirit as the McLaren cars with the use of lightweight materials, V12 engines and a mid-position driver's seat. This year he has released the T.33, which is a spider edition. In late 2020, Gordon Murray purchased the estate in Windlesham to build a headquarters for his new company. It will become a development and research center for car production with a separate test track on the outside. The work is still ongoing, but the test track has recently been opened.
In connection with the transfer, Kamkorp's former assets were sold at auction in September 2020 where Bristol Owners Club secured most of it. After a real "hard work" from the club, everything has been transported safely back to Bristol in the Brabazon Hangar at the disused airstrip at Filton in Bristol, where the car brand had its cradle. Some of the objects will probably be transferred to museums.
Bristol as a hobby car
It is said that the Bristol cost double what you would pay for the most expensive Porsche, BMW or Mercedes-Benz. The most expensive Bristol – the Bristol Fighter T – is said to have cost about 4 times as much as the Dodge Viper GTS. What you have to give as a used car probably depends on the condition – perhaps also on the car's history. Several of the cars for sale have undergone full renovation, and are probably in better condition than they were when they rolled out of the factory premises in Bristol. The Bristol Blenheim in question sold for £23.625 a year after I photographed the car near Holland Park in London. The car was then not in top condition, but not a wreck either. Bristols are said to have been far from flawless when they were handed over to their owners - and several owners are said to have had the cars examined and fixed at an early stage at their own expense (they were rich, after all). A newer, restored Bristol is likely to cost from £50.000 upwards. One must count on giving more early models based on BMW with 2 liter engines.
I said at the outset that I did not find Bristol's cars particularly attractive. I'd rather put my money into a classic Porsche. What makes Bristol interesting, however, is that it represents something distinctive, something unique and something that has stories attached to it – with roots in World War 2 warplanes, proud British car builders, the colorful Tony Crook and perhaps the merits of previous owners. I would say that those who own a handmade Bristol show that they defend such values - a counterweight to products without consideration of soul and life course.
No one knows exactly how many Bristol Blenheims were produced. It is estimated that the number could be 39. There are 7 left in the UK on signs according to the website howmanyleft.co.uk. In Norway, there are 6 Bristols in total - of different models.
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