Barnato Hassan Special at Goodwood Revival 2007

Comment by Robert McLellan: "In the Ray Roberts book he refers to it as chassis BH1, engine BH1, registration MPE 10. All seem meaningless numbers. It never had a Bentley chassis, was built after Bentley sold his company and at best had and probably still has some Bentley parts."

8-Litre Barnato Hassan Special at Goodwood Festival of Speed, 2007

These photographs are from Motor Sport magazine, 1957.

Accompanying text for Photo 1 reads: The 8-litre Barnato-Hassan Special leading during the 1935 500 Mile Race. With this body the Barnato-Hassan set the lap record to 142.6 m.p.h. earlier that year. This stands as the Class B lap record.

Accompanying text for Photo 2 reads: Mrs. Stewart's Derby-Miller about to be passed by Oliver Bertram in the Barnato-Hassan Special, during the 1935 500 Mile Race. The Barnato was later fitted with a different body.

 

These photographs are from Motor Sport magazine, 1957.

Accompanying text for Photo 1 reads:
Oliver Bertram at speed in the Barnato-Hassan-Special during the Brooklands Trophy Race at the 1938 B.R.D.C. Meeting. He finished third at 133.58 m.p.h. the fastest speed in the race. The car lapped at 143.11 m.p.h. in this form during the Dunlop Jubilee Meeting, but this was not recognised as a Class B record. As Bertram was always defeated by his handicap the car wasn't entered after 1938.

Accompanying text for Photo 2 reads:
A posed picture of the Barnato-Hassan-Special in 1937 form showing the balloon rear tyres, the air funnel for the carburetters, and the narrow body used in the car's final form.

1934 B.R.D.C. 500 Mile Race.

Bentley Drivers Club meet

The Barnato-Hassan, owned by Woolf Barnato, as it was in 1938. For additional information on this car see Bentley Specials & Special Bentleys by Ray Roberts.

"Was in Brooklands museum for a few years with its distributor missing, before Keith Schellenberg bought it"

THE BARNATO-HASSAN SPECIAL
After the demise of the Old Company, Wally Hassan worked for Barnato maintaining and building his racing cars. The Bamato-Hassan Special was first built in 1933 around the 6 1/4 Litre engine of 'Old No. 1' on a special chassis frame to Hassan's design, using a variety of Bentley bits from the Kingsbury Service Station and new parts, with outrigged rear springs and Lockheed brakes. Finished in 1934 the car was almost invariably driven by Oliver Bertram, an up-and-coming barrister, as Barnato had finally been put off Brooklands racing by Clive Dunfee's fatal accident in the 1932 500 Miles Race. The 6 1/2 Litre engine threw a rod in the 1934 500 Miles Race and was replaced by a new 8 Litre engine No. BH 1. In this form Bertram raised the lap record to 142.60 mph before Cobb's Napier-Railton raised it to 143.44 mph, which was never beaten. Rebuilt in 1936 as a single-seater with centralised steering, Bertram's fastest lap in this form was 143.11 mph in 1938; the all-up weight having been reduced to 29 cwt by, among other changes, the removal of the front brakes. However, the car was defeated by the handicappers, and Barnato, being of the opinion that the fastest car should win, became disenchanted. An attitude of mind doubtless prompted by the demolishing of a set of Dunlop Track tyres at every meeting! Subsequently rebuilt post-war by Ian Metcalfe, the Barnato retired in the 1948 Spa 24 Hour Race with clutch trouble and crashed at Montlhery in practice for the 12 Hour Race. Now owned by Keith Schellcnberg Esq., and a frequent VSCC competitor with the body returned to the 1936-38 guise.