First Blower Bentley Continuation built

Bentley has released pictures of the first of 13 Blower Bentleys it will build as part of its latest Blower Continuation Series.

Claimed to be the result of an incredible 40,000 hours of work involving the creation of more than 2000 hand-crafted components, 'Car Zero' is not part of the exclusive run of 12 customer cars but built to be a prototype for the production models.

As well as undergoing extensive test and durability trials, the British car-maker has also confirmed the first new Blower Bentley will take part in a top speed run in an attempt to match, if not beat, the 222km/h recorded in 1932 with legendary racer Tim Birkin behind the wheel.

The new Blower Bentley was modelled on Bentley's own 1929 4½-litre works race car that was disassembled with all its components scanned using lasers.

The car's original blueprints, drawings and even period photographs were used for reference, while the build itself involved some of the original tooling used in the creation of the Bentley.

One of the biggest challenges facing Bentley Mulliner engineers was to recreate the 4.4-litre supercharged four-cylinder engine that powered Tim Birkin's famed racer.

According to engineers, Car Zero has an exact replica of the 1929 car's engine, featuring identical aluminium pistons, overhead camshaft, novel twin-spark ignition and a recreation of the original Amherst Villiers-designed roots-type supercharger.

Since the ancient engine couldn't be run-in on a modern engine dyno, Bentley had to employ a former engine test facility used to run-in and power test the Merlin V12 aero engines that were produced by the Crewe factory for Spitfires and Hurricane fighters in the Second World War.

Bentley has not revealed how close to the 175kW power figure the recreated supercharged-four produced.

Beneath the skin, the Bentley Continuation stays faithful to the original with a chassis made from hand-formed heavy-gauge steel that is hot-rivetted for extra strength by 200-year-old engineering firm Israel Newtown & Sons Ltd, a company that traditionally makes boilers for steam trains.

The big Blower's radiator, meanwhile, is made of solid nickel and is identical to the original, while the leaf springs and shackles are said to have been made by a blacksmith from the West Midlands.

Even the brakes, an area you would think Bentley might have been tempted to improve, are the same 400mm mechanical drums, while the steering remains a recirculating ball set-up.

The incredible lengths Bentley has gone to ensure Car Zero is as close to the 1929 car as possible continues within the open-air cabin.

For example, there's a hand-finished ash frame that has been trimmed to look identical to the original Oxblood red leather seats, but instead of real hide, Rexine has been used – a faux substitute.

The seats themselves are also stuffed with 10kg of horsehair – somewhat at odds with skipping the leather.

Finally, the car's body is painted in gloss black instead of a modern metallic or pearl finish.

Since the Car Zero Blower Bentley is very much a prototype, the luxury car-maker says it will now undertake a gruelling 35,000km test run, 8000km of which will take place on track at race speeds to simulate famous rallies like the Peking to Paris or the legendary Mille Miglia, as well as a crack at recording a top speed.

Once signed off, Bentley's Mulliner division will begin building the 12 customer cars – a process that will take around two years to complete.

The motivation with restarting production of the iconic Blower Bentley is said to be part of Bentley's ongoing centenary celebrations.

Sadly, if you fancy one of the 12 continuation cars, all have been sold for what's believed to have been a large seven-figure sum.