Rear View of a David Ayre's, 1934, Barnato Hassan Special, waiting for the qualifying session of the Bentley Centenary Trophy for Pre-War Sport Cars

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The Barnato Hassan Special was built by Walter Hassan for Woolf Barnato in 1934. It was built on a narrow ladder chassis with a birdcage frame for the bodywork and a Bentley engine. For the 1935 season the engine was replaced with an 8-litre engine. The steering column was not centralised therefore the driver sat on the offside of the body. It was built as a Brooklands Outer Circuit competitor with streamlining being an important factor to the build. The fuel used in the racer was 40% alcohol, 40% benzole and 20% Ethyl petrol. For many of the races the Barnato Hassan ran with only rear brakes. Also to be considered was the rough surface of the racing track, frequently this abrasive surface shredded the tread off the tyres.

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Size: 4700px × 3744px
Location: Silverstone Circuit, Towcester, Northamptonshire, NN12 8TN
Photo credit: © John Gaffen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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