Chassis No B35MX was originally completed in May of 1939, finished in black with a tan leather interior and fitted with a unique and highly stylish sedanca coupe body by Thrupp and Maberly. It was delivered new to Captain Edward Henry Molyneux, who after serving in WWI opened a fashion house which expanded into Cannes, London and Monte Carlo, clothing notable names from the 1930’s such as the Duchess of Kent, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo and Vivien Leigh. The car changed hands various times during its early life, owned by Mrs Lumley in late 1939, Mr Lyall in 1942, Mr Sneezum in 1946 and Mr C Abrahams in 1948. In 1957 it was purchased by the 8th Earl of Bathurst and the following year it was bought by Mr Wilson of Bury St Edmunds, who had his coat of arms added to the coachwork, a feature the car still retains today. It was first acquired by Frank Dale when we supplied it in 1977 to Mr Manfred Zimmer. A decade later we then supplied the car once again, this time to Mr Derek Randall, the Rolls Royce Enthusiasts Club chairman, who instructed a comprehensive restoration of the car between 2002 and 2004 at Fiennes. The total cost of the works exceeded £170,000. Following the completion of the works B35MX was sold to the present owner who showed it twice the following year, where it won The Cook Trophy at the BDC Concours, judged as the best Derby Bentley with open coachwork and was awarded first place in the “Best Pre-War Car” class at the RREC South of England Rally. Since its concours wins, Chassis No B35MX has been, regularly enjoyed by the present owner whilst being correctly maintained following the extensive works carried out around twenty years ago. It has recently been appraised by our workshop team and comes checked, prepared and tested. A significant and very stylish Overdrive Derby Bentley that comes complete with extensive history and in super condition. A car we have known for many years and one that we are delighted to have back again for sale. During the late 1920s and early 1930s Bentley ran into grave financial trouble and by 1931 Rolls-Royce had stepped in and bought the assets and goodwill of the defunct company and formed a new one, Bentley Motors (1931)Ltd. Rolls-Royce had considered the Bentley marque to be a growing threat to their future success, but following their purchase decided to continue the Bentley name, albeit under their own stewardship, taking the company in an entirely new direction with the creation of the Silent Sports Car or Derby Bentley. In 1933 the new Bentley 3.5 Litre model was released and was an instant success. The combination of effortless power and style met with almost universal praise. It was powered by a developed twin carburettor version of Rolls-Royces own 20/25 model and was installed in a low 126-inch wheelbase chassis that basically remained unaltered until the cessation of production in 1939 due to the outbreak of hostilities. Synchromesh was present on third and fourth gears and the Derby’s were fitted with a crossflow cylinder head and superb servo assisted brakes, encapsulating all of the perfection of Rolls-Royce engineering in this small sporting Bentley. Fitting of individual coachwork by approved body builders continued in true Rolls-Royce fashion giving potential buyers a great deal of choice in the look of their new motor car. 1936 saw further improvements with the introduction of the 4.25 Litre model when production of the 3.5 Litre unit ceased. Steady development continued throughout the cars production and in late 1938 even more power was obtained when the overdrive models were introduced, which were known as the MX/MR series cars. The original Bentley sales literature outlined the key improvements that improved the overdrive cars performance which included the provision of an overdrive gearbox which would allow the car to attain a greater maximum speed without exceeding maximum engine revolutions. The steering was of improved design, providing greater control under all conditions. Modified gear ratios and slight engine modifications also improved acceleration under certain conditions. The slower running engine coupled with the over drive top gear resulted in greater silence and smoothness. And finally centralised chassis lubrication and automatic shock absorbers with over-riding hand control were fitted. The MX/MR models were truly the ultimate incarnation on the Derby chassis and are still very much sought after some seventy years on. Just two hundred chassis examples were created, finding their way to lucky owners with a variety of coachwork designs.