Among the array of Vintage Bentley models, the Speed Six is held in the highest regard, with W.O. Bentley himself describing it as “the most successful sporting car we made.” The Speed Six’s lore is legendary, from its October 1928 introduction at the Olympia Motor Show, to Woolf Barnato and the Blue Train saga, to the back-to-back Le Mans victories in 1929 and 1930. However, absolute speed was only half of the Speed Six equation, as the manner in which its raw power was delivered instilled a level of driver confidence unmatched by competitors. Period Bentley advertising promised speed, comfort, and reliability.

The Speed Six was the natural evolution of the 6.5-litre model, benefiting from a higher compression ratio and twin carburetors. Mechanical upgrades for cars built for 1930 (from chassis SB2759 and earlier) included a revised intake manifold and Bosch magneto with horsepower now reaching 180. Visually, Speed Six differences were minimal and included a parallel-sided radiator, replacing the angled version of the 6.5-litre model, and green enamel badging. Just 182 Speed Six models were built during its two-year production run, with three chassis lengths offered in order to accommodate stunning coachwork ranging from Le Mans tourers to formal saloons.

Chassis SB2769 was built on the short, 11' 6" chassis and carries one of the most striking bodies ever to grace a coachbuilt Vintage Bentley. It is no surprise that this comes from the pen of Jacques Saoutchik. A coachbuilder is always at their best when truly inspired by a client, and in this case the client, one William F. Leib, would no doubt have also been inspired. It is said that this car was commissioned on the occasion of his second marriage.

Mr. Leib, a wealthy San Francisco stockbroker, had founded Leib Keyston Co. with his partner George Keyston in 1919, and from their large offices at 50 Post Street had developed a very successful business. Hailing originally from Louisville, Kentucky, he was well ingrained in the San Francisco society circles as a member of the Pacific Union Club, among other institutions, by the late 1920s. His bride, Arabella McCreery – the wife of the late Lawrence McCreery – was even more well-to-do. At the time of her first marriage, she was known as Arabella Schwerin, and the occasion was described as “uniting two of the oldest, and probably best known, socially and financially, families of California.”

With money being no object, the flamboyant Speed Six conjured by Saoutchik was replete with all of the hallmark features of the coachbuilder’s art from this period. Every aspect was tailored. Its exterior echoed the bulbous Bentley radiator at its bow, with gracefully curved shoulders and bodywork that flowed on every plane, including the subtly dished door bases. The trademark flowing fenders were exquisitely laced, with bright nickel silver stretching from bold spears at the front to neatly tapered rear fender treatments. The vee’d Bentley radiator was matched by the vee of the windshield itself – purposefully raked and rising to the neat, convertible top. Another signature Saoutchik detail – a long, diamond-shaped array of tapered louvres – appeared below each door. A picture of modernity in its day, the trunk was seamlessly integrated into the bodywork, flanked at either end by elegant biplane bumpers.

The Speed Six was equally admirable inside the cockpit, where the exterior’s themes continued with a highly unusual, polished, solid German-silver dashboard and matching door cappings – each fitted with coach handles for the sprung windows, another Saoutchik hallmark. If the sheer design and imposing size of the six-cylinder Bentley were not enough of a statement, its original cobalt blue and magnolia color scheme made it entirely plausible that talk of the Speed Six at Mr. Leib’s nuptials eclipsed talk of the wedding itself. The new Bentley is believed to have remained with Mr. and Mrs. Leib for many years, until Mrs. Leib’s passing in 1950. Soon after, the car passed into the hands of a new owner, Don Blank of nearby Burlingame, California. Under Mr. Blank’s care, the Speed Six was handsomely featured in Road & Track magazine in 1952.

By the 1980s, the Speed Six had entered the collection of noted enthusiast Robert Martin, who used and exhibited the car in the UK – including at the Bentley Drivers Club show in Kensington Gardens. It later passed to famed Kansas-based collector Lawrence Smith, who showed the car at Pebble Beach in 2001, before selling it to the current owner.

More than a decade ago, the car was entrusted to R.C. Moss in the UK for refurbishment. One of the foremost experts of this era of the marque, R.C. Moss – a company with the finest eye for the details – embarked on an exquisite restoration of the already incredibly original car. Before commencing work, Graham Moss commented: “It was clear that car had been looked after really well, and as soon as I saw it I knew it was something special; probably the most unique Vintage Bentley I have ever seen. This is not only a ‘matching numbers’ car, but absolutely everything was there, down to the [original] chassis clips for the wiring.” The work included a repaint by Lone Pine Garage, specialists subcontracted by Moss, which returned the car to its Cobalt blue hue, just as Mr. and Mrs. Leib would have enjoyed in the early days of their marriage. With more than $1 million spent on its restoration, the Speed Six returned in style to the lawns of Pebble Beach, where it received a well-earned First in Class award. Over the course of the last decade, the car has remained cossetted within a major private collection, continuing to be well cared-for and lovingly maintained. Endowed with the effortless performance of the legendary Le Mans-inspired, six-cylinder, 6 ½-litre engine, and only modestly encumbered by its compact body, this Saoutchik Drophead Coupe has considerable potential as a strong tour car for a multitude of events. Whether on a North American Vintage Bentley Club or Rolls-Royce Owners’ Club tour – or even a long-distance event like the Colorado Grand – driving and experiencing the tremendous surge of power these cars offer is endlessly rewarding. As listed in the definitive reference work Bentley: The Vintage Years by Dr. Clare Hay, it is noted as being: “In [the] USA in extraordinarily original order, low mileage from new, original body and all original components.” Never before publicly offered for sale, this one-of-a-kind Bentley presents its next custodian with the ownership of a rara avis in terms of its build, originality, history, and condition.