This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2018) |
Bristol 404 Bristol 405 | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Manufacturer | Bristol Aeroplane Co. (now Bristol Cars) |
Production | 1953–1958 52 (404) 308 (405) |
Body and chassis | |
Class | Luxury car |
Body style | Two-door coupé (404) Four-door saloon (405) Two-door drophead coupé (405) |
Layout | FR layout |
Powertrain | |
Engine | 1,971 cc ohv I6 2,216 cc ohv I6 [1] |
Chronology | |
Predecessor | Bristol 403 |
Successor | Bristol 406 |
"In this latest product from Bristol Cars Ltd, I am in the happy position of having very little with which to find fault"
Contents
"One starts to throw this car into corners after a very few miles of motoring. The high geared steering responds to a single quick turn of the two spoke wheel, and the 405 goes round, as uncompromisingly upright as a Calvinist pastor ... "
Mike Brown in The Autocar, May 1955 [2]
The Bristol 404 and Bristol 405 are British luxury cars which were manufactured by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. The 404 was manufactured from 1953 to 1958, and the 405 from 1955 to 1958. The models were successors to the Bristol 403. The 404 was a two-seat coupé and the 405 was available as a four-seat, four-door saloon and as a four-seat, two-door drophead coupé.
Unlike previous or later Bristol models, there is considerable confusion in nomenclature when it comes to the Bristol 404 and 405. The 404 was a very short-wheelbase car introduced in 1953, whereas the longer 405 was introduced in 1955. The wheelbases are 8 feet (2,438 mm) for the 404 and 9 feet 6 inches (2,896 mm) for the 405.
The 405 itself was seen in two versions. The more common (265 of 308 built) is a four-door saloon built on the standard chassis of the previous Bristols, whilst the 405 drophead coupé or 405D (43 built) had a convertible body by Abbotts of Farnham. The body used aluminium panels over a steel and ash frame, mounted on a substantial horse-shoe shaped chassis. [2] Most cars built had a highly tuned (through advanced valve timing) version of the 2 litre six-cylinder engine called the 100C which developed 125 bhp (93 kW) as against the 105 bhp (78 kW) of the standard 100B 405 engine. Even the 105 bhp engine was fitted with Solex triple downdraft carburettors. [2] With UK fuel supplies no longer restricted to the low-octane wartime "pool petrol", all engines for the 404 and 405 came with higher compression ratios than predecessor Bristols — 8.5:1 as against 7.5:1. Rack and pinion steering was fitted and the car's handling won accolades from press reports when the car was introduced (and subsequently). [2]
Compared to the 403, the 404 and 405 had an improved gearbox with much shorter gear lever which improved what was already by the standards of the day a very slick gearchange. The 405, though not the 404, had overdrive as standard apart from the earliest models, and front disc brakes became an option apart from the earliest models, and were fitted to almost all 405 drophead coupés. A few late 405s were fitted with the higher torque 2.2 litre engine introduced in the later 406. [1]
Externally, a notable feature of the 404 and 405 was the abandonment of the BMW-style radiator grille for one much more like an aero-engine. The 405, although the only four-door car ever built by Bristol, had styling that the company was later to refine for many years on their later Chrysler V8-engined cars during the 1960s. It was also the model that introduced the Bristol feature of sizable lockers in the front wings accessed externally by gullwing doors. The locker on the nearside held the spare wheel and jack, whilst that on the offside housed the battery and fuse panel.
In the 1955 comedy film Josephine and Men , one of the main characters, Alan, played by Donald Sinden, drives a maroon 405.
A silver 405, described as a 1955 Bristol, is driven by the character Jack Kerruish (played by Kevin Whately) in the first three series of Peak Practice , set in the early 1990s in the Peak District.
A maroon 405 is featured prominently in the 2009 independent film An Education , directed by Lone Scherfig, which is a period film set in 1961 in the London suburbs.
The vicar, Sidney Chambers (played by James Norton), was given a lift in a maroon 405, at the beginning of Grantchester , series 3, episode 5 (2017).
Daniel Day-Lewis is featured driving a maroon 405 around Whitby, North Yorkshire, in the film Phantom Thread , directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and released on Christmas Day 2017. [3]
In the 2017 Sony Pictures film adaptation of Agatha Christie's Crooked House , private detective Charles Hayward (Max Irons) uses a maroon 405.
Bristol Cars was a British Manufacturer of hand-built luxury cars headquartered in Bristol, England. It was formed from the car division of the Bristol Aeroplane Company after the Second World War and later became independent as Bristol Cars Limited. After being placed in receivership and being taken over in 2011, it entered liquidation in February 2020.
The Jaguar XK150 is a sports car produced by Jaguar between 1957 and 1961 as the successor to the XK140.
Armstrong Siddeley was a British engineering group that operated during the first half of the 20th century. It was formed in 1919 and is best known for the production of luxury vehicles and aircraft engines.
The MG T-Type is a series of body-on-frame open two-seater sports cars that were produced by MG from 1936 to 1955. The series included the MG TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, and MG TF Midget models. The last of these models, the TF, was replaced by the MGA. Although the design was similar to contemporary cars of the 1930s, it came to be considered outdated by the 1950s.
The Riley RM Series is an executive car which was produced by Riley from 1945 until 1955. It was the last model developed independently by Riley prior to the 1952 merger of Riley's still new owner Nuffield, with Austin to form BMC. The RM series was originally produced in Coventry, but in 1949 production moved to the MG works at Abingdon. The RM models were marketed as the Riley 1½ Litre and the Riley 2½ Litre.
The Lancia Beta was an entry-level luxury car produced by Italian car manufacturer Lancia from 1972 to 1984. It was the first new model introduced by Lancia after it had been taken over by Fiat in 1969.
The Bentley Mark VI is an automobile from Bentley which was produced from 1946 until 1952.
The Lagonda 3-Litre is an automobile which was produced by Aston Martin Lagonda from 1953 until 1958. It was the second Lagonda model of the David Brown/Aston Martin era. The 3-Litre was fitted with a higher displacement 2.9 L 140 bhp version of the twin overhead camshaft Lagonda Straight-6 engine designed by Walter Owen Bentley.
SS Cars was a British manufacturer of sports saloon cars from 1934 until wartime 1940, and from March 1935 of a limited number of open 2-seater sports cars. From September 1935, their new models displayed a new name: SS Jaguar. By then, its business, which was founded in 1922, was run by and largely owned by William Lyons. Lyons had been partner with 1922 co-founder William Walmsley until Walmsley sold his shareholding in January 1935.
The Jaguar Mark IV is a range of automobiles built by Jaguar Cars from 1945 to 1949. The cars were marketed as the Jaguar 1½ litre, Jaguar 2½ litre and Jaguar 3½ litre with the Mark IV name later applied in retrospect to separate this model from the succeeding Mark V range.
The Lancia Flaminia is a luxury car produced by Italian automaker Lancia from 1957 until 1970. It was Lancia's flagship model at that time, replacing the Aurelia. It was available throughout its lifetime as saloon, coupé and cabriolet. The Flaminia coupé and cabriolet were coachbuilt cars with bodies from several prestigious Italian coachbuilders. Four "presidential" stretched limousine Flaminias were produced by Pininfarina for use on state occasions.
The Daimler Conquest is an automobile which was produced by The Daimler Company Limited in the United Kingdom from 1953 to 1958. Based on the Lanchester Fourteen, the Conquest replaced the Daimler Consort. Sales were affected by increasing prices and by the fuel shortage caused by the Suez Crisis, and production ended by January 1958, before a replacement model was in production.
The Bristol 406 was a luxury car produced between 1958 and 1961 by British manufacturer Bristol Aeroplane Co. Their cars were constructed to very high engineering standards and were intended to be long-lasting to justify their very high price. Buyers might arrange considerable changes to the specification of their own particular vehicle. Bristol Aeroplane's car division later became Bristol Cars.
The Jaguar Mark V is a luxury automobile built by Jaguar Cars Ltd of Coventry in England from 1948 to 1951. It was available as a four-door Saloon (sedan) and a two-door convertible known as the Drop Head Coupé, both versions seating five adults. It was the first Jaguar with independent front suspension, first with hydraulic brakes, first with spats, first specifically designed to be produced in both Right and Left Hand Drive configurations, first with disc centre wheels, first with smaller wider 16" balloon tyres, first to be offered with sealed headlamps and flashing turn signals for the important American market, and the last model to use the pushrod engines.
Sunbeam-Talbot Limited was a British motor manufacturing business. It built upmarket sports-saloon versions under the parenthood of Rootes Group cars from 1938 to 1954. Its predecessor Clément-Talbot Limited had made Talbot automobiles from 1902 to 1935.
The Sunbeam-Talbot 90 is an automobile which was produced and built by Sunbeam-Talbot from 1948 to 1954 and continued as the Sunbeam Mk III from 1954 to 1957.
The Wolseley Ten is a light car which was produced by Wolseley Motors Limited in 1939 and from 1945 to 1948.
The Humber Snipe was a four-door luxury saloon introduced by British-based Humber Limited for 1930 as a successor to the Humber 20/55 hp at the same time as the similar but slightly longer Humber Pullman.
The Standard Fourteen is a British automobile produced by the Standard Motor Company from 1945 to 1948.
The Bristol 406 Zagato is a British-Italian sports car that combines the technology of the Bristol 406 Saloon with a body designed and built by Zagato. This special model, often considered eccentric, was commissioned by Bristol dealer Tony Crook and was produced in very limited quantities. It is known for being lighter, smaller, and faster than the factory-bodied base car. In addition, some older Bristol chassis also subsequently received similar Zagato bodies. Today, the 406 Zagato is considered one of the most expensive classics within the brand’s lineup.