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Bristol 400 Pininfarina - the elegant convertible on a British-German basis

Name: Bristol 400 1947
Brand: Bristol

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Created on April 25, 2016

Text:

Bruno von Rotz

Photos:

Daniel Reinhard

Tom Giddon - Courtesy RM/Sotheby's

Guillaume Tassart

Bruno von Rotz

1000 Miglia srl

Martin Berrang

Archiv

Daniel Reinhard

Tom Giddon - Courtesy RM/Sotheby's

Guillaume Tassart

Bruno von Rotz

1000 Miglia srl

Martin Berrang

Archiv

Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - narrow radiator, but no classic kidney shape

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - Pininfarina dispensed with the BMW kidney grille

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - rounded rear view

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - looks nothing like the factory's Bristol Limousine

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - elegant even with the roof closed

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - the elegant convertible looks not unlike the Alfa Romeo variants built at the time

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - pontoon shape with slightly indicated fenders

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - you wouldn't immediately mistake this car for an Englishman

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - View into the cockpit

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - built as a two-seater

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - Smiths Instruments

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - View into the engine compartment

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - the Bristol in-line six-cylinder that had its roots at BMW

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - elegant door openers

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Bristol 400 Pininfarina Cabriolet (1947) - View into the trunk

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Bristol 400 (1952) - the last Bristol 400 produced, before delivery to a buyer in Australia

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Bristol 400 (1952) - the Bristol staff photographed with the last model 400 produced, after which only the type 401 was produced

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Bristol 400 (1952) - the last Type 400 side by side with its Type 401 successors in the production hall

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Bristol 400 (1946) - the chassis and the front-mounted in-line six-cylinder engine

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Bristol 400 (1948) - at the Gaisbergrennen 2015

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Bristol 400 (1950) at the Ennstal-Classic 2013

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Bristol 400 at the British Car Meeting 2011 in Mollis - the doors open backwards

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Bristol 400 at the British Car Meeting 2011 in Mollis - beautiful bodywork

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Bristol 400 (1948) - at the Mille Miglia 2014

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Bristol 400 Farina (1949) - at the Mille Miglia 2014

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Bristol 400 Cabriolet Pinin Farina (1949) - at the Mille Miglia 2015

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Summary

When Bristol presented its own "400" sports saloon at the Geneva Motor Show in 1947, some observers still felt that the lines lacked a certain elegance. This is where external coachbuilders stepped into the breach, first and foremost Pinin Farina, who gave the 400 chassis a handsome cabriolet body, similar to those used by Alfa Romeo or Lancia. Only a few of these special bodies were produced, the first of which was exhibited at the Geneva Motor Show in 1948. This report portrays the 1947 Bristol 400 with Pininfarina bodywork and goes into its history.

This article contains the following chapters

Launch at the 1947 Geneva Motor Show
Special bodies too
History with special features
Further information

Estimated reading time: 4min

Preview (beginning of the article)

Even during the war, the managers of the Bristol Aeroplane Company were already thinking about how they could ensure full employment after the war. So they agreed with Frazer Nash to jointly develop a sports car based on pre-war BMW technology. They were also able to count on the help of BMW man Fritz Fiedler, whom they relocated to England from post-war Germany. The Bristol 400 consisted of a chassis based on the BMW 326, an engine borrowed from the 328 and a body similar to the 327. The first prototypes were built in 1946 and the new car was presented at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1947.

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