Bristol 407

Bristol
Bristol 407
407
Production period:	1961-1963
Class :	Upper class
Body versions :	limousine
Engines:	Otto engine : 5.2 liters (184 kW)
Length:	4877 mm
Width:	1727 mm
Height:
Wheelbase :	2896 mm
Empty weight :	1651 kg
Previous model	Bristol 406
successor	Bristol 408

The Bristol 407 was a sports car produced by the British car manufacturer Bristol Cars Ltd. , which was produced from 1961 to 1963. Technically and stylistically, it was based on its predecessor, the Bristol 406 , but, in contrast, used an eight-cylinder engine of American origin for the first time. He established a tradition that lasted until the manufacturer went bankrupt in 2011. The introduction of the 407 coincided with the separation of Bristol Cars Ltd. from the parent company Bristol Airplane.

The backgrounds

The Bristol 406 , which was produced from 1958 to 1961, suffered, unlike its predecessors, from a lack of performance: Bristol's own 105 bph in-line six-cylinder engine (type 110) no longer enabled the 1.5 tonne car to achieve the sporty performance that earlier Bristol models had distinguished would have. A further increase in the engine's performance, the concept of which dates back to before the Second World War , could no longer be achieved.

Bristol was therefore looking for a new drive in the second half of the 1950s. First, the company began to develop its own new engine. The key data was a six-cylinder configuration and a displacement of 3.0 to 3.5 liters, a value that was in the range of contemporary Alvis engines. The output of the first prototypes was not convincing, however; In any case, the parent company was of the opinion that the financial cost of the new design was not in proportion to its benefit. In 1959, Bristol tested an Armstrong Siddeley in- line six-cylinder engine as a further alternative . The 4.0 liter engine was used as standard in the Armstrong Siddeley Star Sapphire and made 165 bhp. Bristol fitted a 406 with this engine and ran some factory tests. A takeover in series production did not materialize, however. The prototype went on sale and was in regular use until 1975. In 2015 it was rediscovered in an unrestored condition.

Ultimately, Bristol decided to use American eight-cylinder from Chrysler . It is not clear who led the initiative to use American engines. Bristol owner Tony Crook repeated the following story about this: Actually, Chrysler only wanted to order a Torque-Flite automatic transmission for test purposes. To the surprise of the Bristol employees, Chrysler would have delivered an in-house eight-cylinder in addition to the transmission that had been ordered. Bristol then subjected the engine to in-depth tests and, in view of the high performance and economic efficiency of the concept - which meant saving its own development costs - decided to use the American engine. In order to save further costs, Bristol obtained the engines not directly from the USA, but from Canada, which was part of the Commonwealth . This meant that when the engines were brought to the UK, no import duties were incurred.

The basis for the Bristol engine was an older American engine, which had debuted in 1956 with the Chrysler brand Plymouth and originally had a displacement of 260 CID (4.2 liters). Bristol obtained the engine blocks from the USA and had them completed by hand in a Canadian Chrysler workshop. A number of far-reaching modifications were carried out there at the same time, which differentiated the Bristol engines from their large-scale counterparts:

• The engine bore has been increased from 3.56 inches to 3.87 inches. This ultimately resulted in a displacement of 5.2 liters - with only a marginal change in stroke; Chrysler did not have an engine of this size in its production portfolio.
• The engines received a new, Bristol-designed cylinder head that replaced the original "polyspherical" head of the Plymouth product.
• Finally, the intake ducts were redesigned.

Overall, after the manual modifications, the engine delivered an output of 250 hp. This means that the performance potential had more than doubled compared to the previous model. Bristol was back on track to become a sports car maker.

The switch to American engines was problematic. This step was not without a model: Facel Vega from France had already embarked on this path a few years earlier, and its British competitor Jensen was about to do the same. Conservative British customers were nonetheless skeptical, and according to Tony Crook, quite a few are said to have seen it as a fall from grace. Most of the critics were reconciled by the outstanding performance of the car.

Bristol's veteran 2.0 liter six cylinder engine continued to be built for some time after the introduction of the 407. It was primarily supplied to AC Cars , where it was installed in the Ace, Aceca and Greyhound models until the end of 1962 .

The car

For the new car, Bristol adopted the familiar chassis largely unchanged. The suspension, damping and steering have, however, been adapted to the significantly higher weight of the car. The vehicle continued to have a body made of aluminum sheets, which were based on a massive steel frame. Unlike its predecessor, the frame was now manufactured by Park Royal Vehicles , the company that also produced the legendary London double-decker buses.

Outwardly, the 407 seemed to correspond exactly to its predecessor, the 406: the naked eye hardly saw any difference, even in a direct comparison of the two models. In fact, the body panels of the 407 had been almost completely redesigned - but with the stipulation that the design of the 406 was kept as close as possible. The reason for the changes was the fact that Chrysler's eight-cylinder engine was built significantly lower than the old Bristol engine. This enabled a flatter bonnet, a lower belt line and - to keep the proportions in balance - a different roof. The Bristol Owners Club claims that no body panel on the 406 fitted the 407. If so, then the step from 406 to 407 was certainly one of the best camouflaged model changes in automotive history.

The 407 was initially offered with both automatic and manual transmission. The automatic was - typical for American designs of the time - to operate from the dashboard via push buttons. For the critical clientele, Tony Crook also had a manual transmission from Pont-à-Mousson on offer (the own Bristol transmission could not withstand the torque of the Chrysler engine); Crook later reported, however, that not a single customer had ordered the manual transmission.

The British press received the new Bristol warmly. It was praised that the driving performance was convincing again: The top speed of the 407 determined the top speed of the 407 in a test in October 1961 with 122 miles per hour (196 km / h), and for the acceleration from 0 to 60 miles per hour (96 km / h) the car only needed 9.9 seconds. The average consumption was 20.4 liters per 100 km.

The Bristol 407 remained in production until the summer of 1963. Around 300 copies are said to have been produced during this time.

Special models

Bristol 407 GTZ Zagato

Bristol 407 GTZ Zagato

As in the case of the Bristol 406 , Bristol had a special body designed by Zagato for the 407 . The result, the Bristol 407 GTZ Zagato, had nothing to do with the 406 Zagato. The new design featured an elongated, rounded body with a very low belt line, a "hip swing" over the rear wheels and a lavishly glazed hatchback. The car was significantly lighter than the factory 407 and reached top speeds of over 200 km / h.

The Bristol 407 GTZ Zagato was first exhibited in October 1961 at the Earls Court Motorshow. The car was not on the Bristol stand, however, but on the inconspicuous Zagato stand. The originator of the project was again Anthony Crook (and not Bristol Cars Ltd.). It only took 10 weeks from the idea to the finished product. However, you could see that in the car. Much was improvised. This did not only apply to the radiator grille with a coat of arms-shaped shield borrowed from a Lancia Flaminia Supersport . The car was welcomed in a friendly manner, but the few journalists who were allowed to drive the car criticized the front-heavy construction. The heavyweight of the car was the American engine. The extremely light Zagato body therefore led to an unfavorable weight distribution. Tony Crook, who had initially hoped for a few orders, abandoned the project in the summer of 1962 because the factory had not gotten a grip on weight distribution problems. For all that is known, the 407 GTZ remained a one-off. It still exists today.

Bristol 407 Viotti

Bristol 407 Viotti

Another special model was a four-seater convertible that Carrozzeria Viotti from Turin produced on an uncut chassis from the 407. The body was comparatively simple and, from some perspectives, anticipated the design of the Fiat 1500 Spider . The car was first presented at the 1960 Turin Motor Show at the Viotti stand. This was followed by another presentation in Great Britain, this time at the Bristol Cars stand. The actor Peter Sellers , who loved Bristol vehicles, took over the car for some time and had his colleague Britt Ekland photographed next to the car. The Viotti cabriolet remained a one-off. It still exists today.

literature

• LJK Setright : A private car , 2 volumes, UK 1999.
• RM Clarke: Bristol Cars: A Brooklands Portfolio: 132 Contemporary Articles Drawn from International Motoring Journals , UK 2001.
• Bristol 407 . Detailed presentation of the technology in: Auto Car from September 8, 1961
• Bristol 407 - the Autocar Road Test. Test report on the vehicle in: Auto Car from October 6, 1961.
• Automatic GT - Forecast for the future? Presentation of the Bristol 407 GTZ Zagato in: Road & Track, February 1962.
• Close-up: Bristol´s 407 GT Zagato , in: Sports Car World, May 1962.
• I did it my way . Portrait of Tony Crook on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Bristol Cars brand in 1996. In: Classic and Sportscar, issue 5/1996, p. 124 f.

Web links

Commons : Bristol 407  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Illustration of a Bristol 407 Viotti

Individual evidence

1. ^ Nigel Boothman: 1959 Bristol 406 Development Car. In: Thoroughbred & Classic Car, issue 4/2015, p. 39.
2. ↑ Classic and Sportscar, Issue 5/1996, p. 125.
3. ^ The Carrozzeria Viotti dealt mainly with the conversion of Fiat sedans into station wagons until the 1960s; in addition, some convertibles were built on a Fiat basis. For the history of the body shop s. www.autopuzzles.com (accessed February 26, 2011).