The 1947 Bentley Mark VI Cabriolet, with a custom body by Franay, will be auctioned by Barrett-Jackson. This most unique and valuable postwar Bentley on the planet was created exclusively for the 1947 Paris Auto Show.
The interior of the unique car is adorned with 100 percent frog skin inserts and features a built-in bespoke bar cabinet complete with glasses and silver flasks. That brings an air of extreme customization to the already impressive vehicle. Under the bonnet, there is a 6- cylinder inline engine which had a displacement of 4566cc, and worked on a manual 4-speed transmission. It took 15 seconds only, to reach from 0-100 km/h and, could go to a top speed of 161 km/h.
This is the first major winning Concours d’Elegance car after WWII. Winning the first two major Concours in 1948, back-to-back, on the 12th of June at Enghien and the 17th of June at Bois de Bolougne. Mr. Gudol, the original owner and visionary of the Franay, was an industrialist whose sole purpose was to prove to the world that France was not only back from the rigors of war, but ready to reassert its dominance of haute couture and automotive design elegance.
Among its many honors, in June of 1995 the car was awarded Best of Show at the Hurlingham England Concours D’Elegance as well as the Spectator Trophy. The awards the Franay has won over the decades is proof of his timeless vision.
Barrett-Jackson has not released an estimate for this world’s most expensive postwar Bentley, but in 2006 it sold for $1.7 million. It could easily hit the $2 million mark this time around. [Barrett-Jackson]
