Bentley Motors and The Little Car Company have unveiled a road-legal, 85 per cent scale recreation of the most famous Bentley in the world.

‘Blower Jnr’, a recreation of the 1929 4½-litre Supercharged Team Car No. 2 in Bentley’s Heritage Collection, is the first road-legal car from The Little Car Company and the most sophisticated city car ever built.

Crafted by hand to the same standards as any Bentley, and adorned with beautiful details all inspired by the original Team car, Blower Jnr is built around a 48V electric powertrain with a 15 kW (20 bhp) motor, meaning a top speed of 45 mph / 72 km/h in the UK and EU (25 mph / 40 km/h in the USA due to (legislation) and an expected range of around 65 miles, with tandem seating for two adults.

A faithful homage

Beyond the headline figures, the beauty of Blower Jnr is in the recreation and repurposing of details from the original car.

The frame is painted steel, to which an authentic chassis specification is attached. Leaf springs and scaled-down, period-correct friction dampers bring a comfortable ride, while Brembo disc brakes at the front and drums at the rear provide the stopping power. The electric motor is mounted across the rear axle, while the batteries and drive electronics are all housed in a hidden undertray.

The bodywork is crafted in two sections, and while the rear body structure is crafted in carbon fibre rather than being an ash frame, it’s covered in impregnated fabric, just as the original. The bonnet, with its multiple cooling louvres, is hand-crafted in aluminium using traditional techniques and fastened with beautiful leather buckled bonnet straps.

At the front of the car, the supercharger now houses the charging port that connects the onboard charger to any Type 1 or Type 2 socket. It’s surrounded by the famous Bentley mesh grille, in an authentic nickel-plated radiator housing.

At first glance the dashboard looks like a scaled-down replica of the original, with Engine Turned Aluminium forming the dashboard itself. Other switchgear for the headlights and indicators copies the form and materiality of the magneto switches from the Team Car, while the battery charge gauge recreates the original ammeter.

The First Edition

The first 99 examples of Blower Jnr will be First Edition models. These will feature First Edition badging on the hood, door sill plate and dash as well as an engraved and numbered ‘1 of 99’ plaque. All First Edition models will be finished in Blower Green, with matching painted chassis and wheels, and a Union flag hand-painted on both sides of the body as per the original, while the seats and interior are upholstered in the Dark Green Lustrana Hide used by Mulliner for the Blower Continuation Series. The side panel and radiator carry the period- correct racing number, while the steering wheel is rope-bound.

Historic car No other pre-war Bentley had an impact like the supercharged 4½-litre ‘Blower’ Bentley.

The Blower Bentleys was born from a philosophy devised by Sir Tim Birkin – notable racing driver and Bentley Boy – to extract more speed from the racing Bentleys of the day. The cars competed in 12 races, with the most famous being Team Car No. 2’s adventure at the 1930 Le Mans 24 Hours.

The Blower Continuation Series is the world’s first pre-war continuation, and the final car is in the final stages of build now. A second Continuation Series of 12 Bentley Speed Six models is currently in development.

Blower Jnr will make its world debut in front of 100 VIPs at Monterey Car Week, ahead of a schedule of appearances across the weekend. Production is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2024, starting with the 99 First Edition models.