To Be OFFERED AT AUCTION WITHOUT RESERVE at RM Sothebys' Monterey event, 15 - 16 August 2025.

• The only Bertelli-bodied 4.3 Litre Alvis; a one-off, extremely modern design
• Displayed at the 1935 Paris Salon and Scottish Motor Show
• One of five Bertelli-bodied Alvis automobiles of any specification
• Original numbers-matching chassis, engine, and body per the Alvis Car Record
• A Classic Car Club of America (CCCA) Full Classic

Car number 18039 was prepared by the Alvis works as a 31/2 Litre show chassis, and in that form appeared at the Paris Motor Show, sans coachwork, in October 1935, then the following month at the Scottish Motor Show. After these appearances, the chassis was purchased by Henken Widengren, a Swedish racing driver known for his exploits in ice-racing, as well as a 5th Overall finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1932.

Mr. Widengren commissioned the latest, most modern coachwork for his automobile, produced by Bertelli of Feltham, Middlesex, the small coachbuilding firm operated by Enrico “Harry” Bertelli, brother of the owner of Aston Martin. Only five Alvis cars were bodied by Bertelli, and the 18039 was the sole 4.3 Litre—Widengren having had the chassis raised to the latest specification while his car was being completed. Reportedly he was involved with the creation of the “Airline” body design, with its gracefully sloping fastback roofline, equal to anything being produced by the French ateliers of the period. Indeed, such was the car’s striking lines that it was still considered something very special and worthy of notice in the early post-war years. In the April 1948 issue of Motor Sport, it was pictured, with the caption that “this 4.3. Litre Alvis with special Bertelli body belongs to Henken Widengren, the Swedish racing driver.”

Ironically, by that point, the car, which had been stored through the war, had been sold by Widengren to Walter Lindquist. Lindquist, in turn, sold it in 1953 to Tommy H. Brahmer of Rotebro, near Stockholm, who repainted it white and rebuilt the engine. In 1955 it passed to Hans Fellenius, an artist who more or less stored it for 14 years, after which it was acquired by another Swedish enthusiast, Jarl Östensson, who began a slow process of restoration.

In present ownership since 2009 within a distinguished, carefully chosen collection of important Alvis motorcars, the 4.3 Litre was beautifully restored by the foremost marque specialists, Red Triangle of Kenilworth, England. It has been selectively shown and exhibited since completion of the restoration, most prominently appearing for a time in the rotunda of the Royal Automobile Club in Pall Mall. Today it is proudly offered on American shores, in magnificent form, with all the appeal of its original delivery—one of the most beautiful of all Alvis motorcars.To view this car and others currently consigned to this auction, please visit the RM website at rmsothebys.com/auctions/mo25/.