· Unique small sports car from big car era, bodied by Bertelli

· Complete restoration completed at Enfield Auto Restoration

· Recently shown at Amelia Island Concours

Originally established in 1913, Aston Martin had, by the 1930s, survived bankruptcy to build some of the finest British sports cars. Operating as Aston Martin Ltd., of Feltham, Middlesex, the company was helmed by Italian technician Cesare Bertelli, who designed a new model with a 1½-liter four-cylinder engine, available on two lengths of chassis and with several varieties of sporting bodywork. The 1½-Litre did not sell rapidly, or in large numbers, but the few that were built proved hugely successful in competition, including in such prestigious events as the French Grand Prix at Le Mans.

Factory records from the Aston Martin Heritage Trust confirm that this example, chassis no. F4/455/S, was originally delivered with this “two/four-passenger” Sports body to a Mr. Hadfield, of Watford in the UK, finished in black with a red leather interior. A few years later it moved north to a Mr. Garner in Sutton Coldfield.

Eventually the car came to the U.S. and was purchased by the famed and immense Harrah’s Automobile Collection of Sparks, Nevada. In the mid-1960s, Bill Harrah arranged the sale of the car to a longtime friend and occasional Harrah’s Club headliner, for whom the collection’s shops eventually completed a beautiful restoration in a rich auburn hue. The Aston was subsequently on “permanent loan” to Harrah’s Automobile Collection, displayed amongst the other fine Classics, until the collection was closed in the early 1980s. It then moved to the owner’s East Coast collection and remained there until its sale several years ago.

This car recently underwent complete restoration thanks to Enfield Auto Restoration in Connecticut. The skilled team at Enfield didn’t skip over a single detail, from items like the canvas windows, to the plating on the door sill, every aspect of the vehicle was finished to a period-correct standard. The car originally had a pedal layout that had the gas pedal mounted between the clutch pedal on the left and brake pedal on the right, which was corrected to the modern layout when it was first restored about 60 years ago. Enfield corrected this to the original layout, making the car a bit of a challenge to get used to!