Bentley Mk VI B108CF

1948 Bentley Mk VI

Chassis B108CF,
Body no. 1606

Owner: KC Saayman

The Bentley Mark VI was the first complete car to be manufactured by Rolls-Royce Ltd. Previously only chassis were built and coachwork was constructed by outside coachbuilders.
This is a 1948 Bentley Mk VI
Standard Steel Saloon,
chassis B108CF.
Only 3168 of this particular
model were built.

Only 28 of the 4 1/4 litre Mk VI's were exported to South Africa, no 4 1/2 litre's and one R-Type
(The later incarnation of this car)

The CF cars were numbered B2CF to B500CF, so only 250 were built. (On these cars Rolls-Royce used only even numbers on sequences starting with 2, and odd numbers on sequences starting with 1. However, they skipped 13) The first CF chassis was built in November 1947,
and the last in April 1948.

The car was originally Mistletoe green with tan hide, and was ordered trough Stanley Motors of Eloff Street, Johannesburg for Sir Michael Bernard Grenville Oppenheimer Bt. from 54 Houghton Drive. It was delivered to Southampton on 9 February 1948, and shipped on the SS Warwick Castle on 12 February 1948 to Durban,
South Africa.
Sir Michael took delivery in March 1948.

Mistletoe green colour on chassis B382CF

(Picture courtesy of "The Classic Rolls-Royce" - p72)

A brief history of the car after Sir Michel's ownership:

12 February 1962 – Service record listing the owner as Dr. L van Dongen, mileage 67 801.

December 1964 - The car was purchased by
Grosvenor Motors, mileage 81 442.

5 February 1965 - Grosvenor Motors sold the car
to Mr. Ralph S Parrott, mileage 81 500.

31 August 1967 - Purchased back by
Grosvenor Motors, mileage 98 760.

1 September 1967 - The car was sold to Mr. Edward Askew.

October 1967 - The car clocked 100 000 miles.

The car has now done about 235 000 miles (2005)

25 July 1968 - The car was resprayed,
mileage 104 444.

Current colour scheme: Tudor over Shell

September 1968 - Car sold to Mr. Don Ogilvy
from Ogilvy and Sims.

2 February 1972 - Sold to Mr. Tom R Robson
for R2000, mileage 123 855.

February 1972 - Gearbox overhaul,
mileage 123 855.

13 September 1974 - Last recorded service at
Grosvenor Motors, mileage 131 304.

2001 - Sold to Mr. Umberto De Stefanis, Johannesburg.

July 2004 - Sold by Bentley Motors SA to current owner, KC Saayman, Johannesburg.

(Picture taken at Northwards Mansion, Parktown)

A little bit of background about the
first owner of the car:

In front of 54 Houghton Drive,
where Sir Michael took delivery
of B108CF more than
56 years ago.

Sir Michael Bernard Grenville Oppenheimer

Sir Ernest Oppenheimer's elder brother, Sir Bernard Oppenheimer, had a son Sir Kurt Michael Oppenheimer (born 1892 and died
in an airplane crash in 1933)
who was married to Lady Ina Oppenheimer. They lived in England and had a son, Michael Bernard Grenville Oppenheimer (born 1924 in England). The son inherited the title at the age of 9 when his father died.

Sir Michael Bernard Grenville Oppenheimer went to school briefly in South Africa. He also worked for a short time for Anglo American in South Africa, and he would have been 24 at the time the Bentley was delivered to him.
He later returned to England.

Sir Michael's mother, Lady Ina Oppenheimer, subsequently married Sir Ernest Oppenheimer (whose first wife had died in 1934), so Sir Ernest Oppenheimer became the stepfather of the young Sir Michael Bernard Grenville Oppenheimer. Harry Oppenheimer and his brother Frank (who drowned in 1935) were Sir Ernest's sons from his first marriage, and Sir Michael was therefore a stepbrother to Harry Oppenheimer.

This picture was taken in 1963 at the
Ranch Motel near Pietersburg while
on a Bentley Drivers Club outing.
Our car is the one second from the right.
The owner at the time was Dr. L van Dongen.

(My sincere thanks to Wayne Kennerley for all his
assistance in researching the history of my Bentley)