THE CAR THAT NEVER WAS
Bentley could have won Le Mans if it had used the 1952 R-Type to make a racer, believed Bob Perry, so he did the job himself. John Evans pays a visit
PHOTOGRAPHY MAX EDLESTON
You won’t find a La Sarthe in any Bentley dealer’s stocklist, much less in the history of the company. However, my hunch is that, one day, examples of this stunning vision of what a Bentley Le Mans racer of the early 1950s might have looked like will find their way into the world’s exclusive showrooms and concours events and their story into the history books.
The fact is, although it’s not made by Bentley, the La Sarthe actually is a Bentley and is recognised as such by the car maker. This is because each one is built around the original chassis, engine, gearbox and mechanicals of a Bentley R-Type saloon, the large-booted model that Crewe produced between 1952 and 1955, supplying it to the public with a standard steel body or to coachbuilders without.
Many factory-bodied R-Types have survived but, out of respect for the model, only those whose bodies are the most corroded and beyond saving are considered for transformation into a La Sarthe. Given that each La Sarthe costs from £500,000, you can assume that only a few factory-bodied R-Types will ever make the cut anyway.