Bentley entered the SUV segment three years ago with
the Bentayga, but surely it won’t make a pickup truck, right? Car enthusiasts certainly hope
that won’t be the case, but the automotive industry has proven to be quite unpredictable
in recent years. The mere thought of a Bentley pickup might be revolting for
car nuts, but how many know that such a vehicle was built in the past?
Say hello to the 1956 Bentley S1 Pickup, a
coachbuilt creation from Australia that will soon go under the hammer at
Silverstone Auctions’ “The Sale of British Marques 2019.” It started life as a
Bentley S1 Saloon that was purchased new in London by Charles Lloyd-Jones.
The car was later sold to the Right Honourable 6th
Earl of Stradbroke, Keith Rous, who took the Bentley with him to Australia. It
was Down Under that the unthinkable happened and the luxurious saloon was
converted into a woody pickup.
The conversion was done by coachbuilder George
Williams of Camperdown, New South Wales, who did a pretty good job as the
photos can attest. He positioned a “Woody-style” bespoke timber load bed where
the rear passenger compartment would normally be and painted the rest of the
body a vibrant Banana Yellow.
Why the owner of the car decided to turn the Bentley
S1 into a pickup is beyond us but we assume it was done for practical reasons.
As you can see, the car is currently wearing the logo of a previous owner,
“Mount Fyans Black Angus Herd,” which used it as a promotional vehicle.
In 2012, the Bentley Ute was bought by a UK
collector who kept it ever since. Now they have decided to part ways with the
unusual vehicle which is not registered in the UK but comes with all taxes
paid. Silverstone Auctions estimates the classic luxury ute will fetch between
£ 25,000 and £ 30,000 at the May 11 auction.
