Goodbye Bristol

Goodbye Bristol

Our 1956 Bristol 405 has been with us for many many years but this week we bid her a fond farewell as she heads off to a new home. We made the decision recently to sell the car as the queue for restorations doesn’t seem to be getting any shorter. The car is now at […]

Bristol Engine Work

Classic car technician James has been working on the engine of our 1954 Bristol 405. The carburettors and refurbished/correct air filters arrived back at the workshop and were fitted to the engine. The three mounting brackets were cleaned thoroughly, and then fitted with the carbs using new gaskets. Then, the linkages were added and adjusted, […]

2 Classics Go Home

Our 1986 Daimler DS420 and our 1970 Bristol 411 have left the Bridge Classic Cars workshop and are now on their way back to their owner in the Netherlands. Both cars have been completely transformed from how they looked when they first arrived with us and we are very excited to see them be reunited […]

Bristol 411 Progress

Classic car technician John has been working on getting our 1970 Bristol 411 running. A new air filter needed to be fitted, however, as the filter base plate has been modified, it fouled the throttle. To overcome this, John used the base plate from the original air filter and cut it down to the right […]

Exhaust Manifold

Our 1970 Bristol 411 has been in the very capable hands of classic car technician John. While working on this beautiful classic car, John prepared the repaired offside exhaust manifold before fitting it back onto the car with new gaskets and bolts. Once the manifold was fitted and secured, John ran the car up to […]

A Makeover For The Seats Of Our 1954 Bristol 405

Quite a bit of interior work has been done on our 1954 Bristol 405 lately. The seats have been a focus of Lydia as she has been working hard to get them into a much more presentable condition. She has been busy sewing calico onto the front seats and fitting them onto their foams and […]

Interior Work On Our 1954 Bristol 405

Lydia has once again been busy working on some of the interior components of our 1954 Bristol 405. This time, her attention turned to the front seat base faces. Lydia first made a vinyl draft so she was able to check the sizing of the flutes. She then went on to mark out the leather […]

On The Way To The Workshop

The main body of our 1954 Bristol 405 has been transported to our workshop. Now it is here with the team, it can begin the next phase of its restoration. With work already done on the seats, it’s time to get the rest of the car in order so it can be one step closer […]

Classic Car Technician In Action – 1970 Bristol 411

Our classic car technicians are always busy working on restoring classic cars. Every now and again, we are able to get a few photos of them doing what they do best, and the below photos of Paul working on parts for our 1970 Bristol 411 are great examples of this.

A Repositioned Steering Arm For Improved Geometry – 1970 Bristol 411

Now that the 1970 Bristol 411 has been converted to a left-hand drive, our classic car technicians have repositioned the steering arm. Doing this improves the steering geometry, which can make a big difference in how the finished car will drive when it is returned to its owner.

Progress – Wiring and New Latches on the 1971 Bristol 411

The Bridge Classic Cars workshop team have been continuing to work on the wiring of the 1971 Bristol 411 along with some other jobs on the classic GT car. The team have been asked to replace the wiring harness through the entire car. John has been going through each of the systems to make sure […]

Repaired – Fixing the Stitching on the 1970 Bristol 411 Steering Wheel

The trim shop at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on the steering wheel of the 1970 Bristol 411 which is in our workshops. The stitching on the backside of the steering wheel had come apart and begun to separate. So, the team have removed the steering wheel in order to pull the material back […]

Routing – Running the New Wiring Harness in the 1971 Bristol 411

The workshop team at Bridge Classic Cars has been working on routing the new wiring harness on the 1971 Bristol 411. At our Suffolk HQ, the Bristol has come in to be rewired and with that, the team have paid careful attention to the routing of each individual wire and its placement/length. The team have […]

Going Back Together – 1970 Bristol 411 Reassembly

The workshop at the Bridge Classic Cars HQ have begun the process of getting the interior of the 1970 Bristol 411 following its in-house LHD conversion. The trim team recently installed the carpet set into the floor of the classic GT car, and from there the workshop team could start to put the seats and […]

Removal – Stripping the Interior Wiring from the 1971 Bristol 411

The workshop team have been working on removing the wiring harness from the interior of the 1971 Bristol 411. The wiring harness, which runs all up and inside the dashboard, has been taken out of the car connector by connector in preparation for the rewiring of the entire car. Each switch, gauge and light on […]

Put Back – Dash Reassembled and Hoses Back in the 1970 Bristol 411

The 1970 Bristol 411 which is in with Bridge Classic Cars to have its left-hand drive conversion done has been worked on by the workshop to complete some of the smaller jobs. The team have reassembled the dashboard with the various dials and switches fitted back into the wooden surround. In the engine bay, the […]

Rewire – Removing the Old Wiring from the 1971 Bristol 411

The workshop at Bridge Classic Cars are busy removing the old wiring from the 1971 Bristol 411 ahead of its rewire by the team. Our workshop manager John has been carefully tracing the wiring from front to back on the classic Bristol to make notes on how the new harness will need to be laid […]

Finishing Touches – Final Dash Panels on the 1970 Bristol 411

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been fitting up the final trimmed panels onto the dash of the 1970 Bristol 411. Brian, one of our in-house trimmers, has been up new dash ends and corners to go along with the leather trimmed panels which cap the bottom edge of the dashboard in the […]

Up on the Ramp – 1971 Bristol 411 Back at the Workshop

The Bridge Classic Cars team welcomed back the 1971 Bristol 411 to our Suffolk HQ to carry out some more work on the car. The classic Bristol will be having a new wiring loom fitted alongside being servicing and inspected ahead of its MOT. Alongside this is a list of small jobs for our workshop […]

From the Inside – Painting the Battery Box on the 1970 Bristol 411

While the 1970 Bristol 411 was in the Bridge Classic Cars paint booth, the team finished off the painting jobs by finishing the battery box, hidden away in the inner wing. The floor of the battery base had been replaced by the team previously as part of some corrosion repairs. This was then prepared and […]

Underside – Painting the Sills on the 1970 Bristol 411

The 1970 Bristol 411 had some work done to repair some areas of corrosion on its sills. The Bridge Classic Cars team cut out any of the questionable areas and replaced them with hand-fabricated pieces which were then welded into the car. Now, the whole car has moved in our in-house Paint Shop for the […]

Small Details – Fitting Pieces Back into the 1970 Bristol 411

The Bridge Classic Cars workshop have been fitting back and wiring up some of the smaller features in the cabin of the 1970 Bristol 411. The team have wired up the headlight switch on the floorboard of the classic GT car and all of its wiring carefully routed beneath the carpet set. Then, the team […]

Stopping Power – Overhauling the Rear Brake Calipers on the 1970 Bristol 411

The 1970 Bristol 411, which is for restoration and left-hand drive conversion at Bridge Classic Cars, has had its rear brakes completely overhauled by the team in the workshop. The technicians at our Suffolk HQ have completely gone through the rear callipers on the car before getting reinstalled back on the classic GT. After double […]

Matched – Finishing the Other Squab Seat on the 1954 Bristol 405

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have completed the 2nd squab seat for the 1954 Bristol 405 which is in for restoration with us at our Suffolk HQ. The team have made an exact copy of the other squab seat which was completed earlier. Both of these pieces have been carefully wrapped up and […]

Like New – Making the Squab Seats for the 1954 Bristol 405

The 1954 Bristol 405, in for restoration at Bridge Classic Cars, has had the trim team finish off the first off 2 squab seats for the car. Lydia, one of our trimmers, has made the whole seat by hand using the original as a template to work from. Each individual piece has been made by […]

In & Out – Fitting the Sound Deadening and Cabin Vents to the 1970 Bristol 411

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on the interior of the 1970 Bristol 411 which is in for its left-hand drive conversion. The team have fit new original-style sound deadening into the floors and tunnel of the classic Bristol as part of the restoration side of the project. Also while fitting […]

Bound – Binding the Carpet Edges of the 1970 Bristol 411

The new carpet set for the 1968 Morris Minor Van has been taken up from the workshop to the trim shop in order for the team to finish off the pieces for the car. Lydia, has taken the individual pieces which were made Brian to create the neat hand-bound edges which run all the way […]

Full Set – Making the New Carpet Set for the 1970 Bristol 411

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on carefully removing the original carpets from the 1970 Bristol 411 in order to template replacement pieces as part of its restorative works. Brian, one of our trimmers, has been removing the pieces from the classic GT in order to separate them into their basic […]

Underfoot – New Rear Carpets on the 1970 Bristol 411

The trim team have been working on making the brand new carpet set for the 1970 Bristol 411 which is in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop for light restorative work and left-hand drive conversion. Brian, one of our trimmers, has carefully taken the carpet set under the rear seats out of the car and up […]

Reimagined – Repairing the Rear Seat and New Front Seat Foams For the 1954 Bristol 405

The interior technicians at Bridge Classic Cars have recreated several key parts for the interior of the 1954 Bristol 405. To begin with, the team have made brand new foam pieces for the front seats of the classic Bristol as part of its restoration. Then, the team could keep stripping down the rear seat base […]