► Driving a restored Bentley S2 Drophead Coupe
► Only 15 Mulliner-coachbuilt examples ever made
► We glide along in sunny California
Have you ever experienced something that has then completely readjusted your perspective? A great TV show, movie or video game that’s your new entertainment benchmark? A great restaurant that’s overwritten your tastebuds?
This classic Bentley S2 has just done that for me. Let me explain.
At a glance
Pros: Near-silent engine, magic carpet suspension, gorgeous detailing
Cons: Slow steering, rarity makes for weighty feeling of responsibility behind the wheel
What is it?
The S2 is what you get if you climb up the current Continental GT’s family tree by a few generations. The model was designed as a luxury grand tourer, just like the Conti, and came with fixed roof coupe and four-door Flying Spur models as well as Drophead Coupe convertibles like this one during its three-year production run between 1959 and 1962.
For luxury car manufacturers, this period kickstarted the shift to manufacturing more of the cars they produced in-house. The days of simply making rolling chassis for coachbuilders to then build on (like the days of the Bentley Speed Six, something we’ve had a passenger ride in, in a Continuation version) were dwindling.
Instead, more of the bodywork was being manufactured to a set standard for the coachbuilders to then trim afterwards. Of the circa-2300 S2s produced, several coachbuilders like Park Ward, James Young and H. J. Mulliner & Co. went to work trimming their own versions. Just 15 examples of the S2 Drophead Coupe by Mulliner were ever produced, making this one of the rarest cars in the world.
Bentley also points to the S2 being the last time its luxury grand tourer had single headlamps instead of Bentley’s more conventional dual arrangement. Just like the new fourth-gen Continental GT – with its ‘Ultra Performance Hybrid’ powertrain – announced earlier in 2024.
What are the specs?
Every S2 used a 6.2-litre Bentley/Rolls-Royce L-series V8 – an engine that saw service in the S2, S3 and T-Series from Bentley, as well as the Phantom V, Silver Cloud II and III from Rolls-Royce. The version seen in the S2 developed around 200bhp and is related to the larger six-and-three-quarters V8 that powered numerous Bentleys and Rolls-Royce models right up to the last Mulsanne that retired in 2020.
This particular example, UFF 366, is owned by Bentley and makes up one small part of its huge heritage fleet. After seeking it out (and almost buying a fake while looking for one), Bentley’s team quickly realised that UFF 366 was, to put it mildly, in poor condition.
This model was originally delivered in 1961 and was purchased from a French owner in 2022. The car was originally right-hand drive, which was then converted to left-hand drive at some point in its life, while the original Regal Red colour was painted over with a dark blue.
Bentley took two years to painstakingly restore it, stripping the bodywork down to the bare metal and redoing bodged repair work. The engine, four-speed automatic transmission and rear axle were completely rebuilt, and the car’s wiring was completely overhauled – even using identical wire colours used in the original spec. It was also converted back to right-hand drive, painted in Bentley’s own Ming Blue and given a thorough interior retrim.
What’s the interior like?
Fascinatingly detailed, and yet oh so simple. As you climb in after opening the impressively solid door, your backside slowly sinks into a thickly padded and sprung seat like you’re reclining in a bath filled with caramel, colour and all. That is, of course, if you can get your knees underneath the utterly enormous steering wheel. It took lanky 6’2” me an undignified moment to get comfy.
Everything just feels so tactile. Dainty, and yet robust. The chunky clunks from twisting the key. Light resistance from the thin indicator stalks, but heavy resistance from the toothed column shifter. A handbrake that requires a firm pull to release, but a light one to engage. Moments of not knowing my own strength mingle with ones where I need to try a bit harder.
The restoration is, as you’d expect, exemplary. Much like the Speed Six Continuation, I almost feel guilty being inside it, like I need a floor mat to clean my shoes, all zips and buttons kept well clear and gloves for operating the controls. It’s like being given the key to a museum artifact.
How does it drive?
Turn the key and, for a moment, I don’t realise the S2 has even started at all. Despite a thumping-great engine capacity that would make GM and Ford executives drool, Bentley’s V8 is a lesson in finesse and restraint. A gentle ‘ahem’ from your butler announcing his arrival into the room is all you’re getting.
Release the parking brake, pull the column shifter into gear and the S2 creeps off the line with some eagerness. I’m quick to apply brake pressure, given I’m pulling out of a rather busy hotel foyer filled with supercars during 2024’s Monterey Car Week and realise a good amount of weight is required to get the S2 to stop again. The pulse rate spikes.
A minute or two later and we’re rolling out of the hotel complex and… oh, my. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced a car that rides quite like this does. Quite a few car makers over the years have always chased that ‘magic carpet’ ride quality, and some have gotten close. But no other car I’ve ever experienced glides over the road quite like this does. It’s fascinating and deeply impressive, resetting what is considered to be a comfortable car in my brain.
The steering is power assisted – a rarity for the time – but it’s still rather slow, requiring purposeful sweeps of the wheel and a bit of improvisational dance to navigate 90-degree crossroad turns, but I find a rhythm.
As the road opens up, I can shift it into third, taking a second to navigate the teeth in the shift column while keeping an eye on the road ahead. The first few minutes behind the wheel are, I’ll be honest, quite nervy; it’s brilliant to see a car this rare on the road but feels like an enormous responsibility.
But, after a few more moments, it all sinks into place – helped somewhat by the fantastic views, warm sunshine and low speed limit of 17 Mile Drive on the Monterey peninsula. Shoulders relax and fingers rest on the thin rimmed steering wheel, the S2 wafting across the coastal road and silently encouraging me not to be in any sort of hurry. Don’t worry, you’ll get there. You’ve got all the time in the world.
Verdict: Bentley S2 Drophead by Mulliner
Bentley’s S2 is just one part of the brand’s long line of luxurious and well-appointed motor vehicles, but this one deliberately feels like a demonstration of less really meaning more. The recipe is relatively simple when you look at it; clean design lines, a tidy interior, a robust engine and… that’s about it.
And yet, what the S2 seems to afford the affluent owner is an abundance of time; a tacit encouragement to slow down, lift off and take a deep breath. It’s a fabulously complete luxury car, with one of the best ride quality experiences one will ever get to enjoy.