1972 Bristol 411 - The Ubercool Alternative to a Jaguar XJ-C

[@thu-bu1hf]

The fact that Jay actually seems to run the only car channel bothering to present and drive these cars makes him a cool guy.

[@JayEmmOnCars]

Thanks! Anything interesting is worth my time

[@LarsAgerbk]

@@JayEmmOnCars hope you get the chance to drive some of those pre-db7 Aston Martins from the 90ies. Not a lot of videos on those on KZbin.

[@noelmannion4433]

@@JayEmmOnCars I hope you video a Gordon Keeble, a car I was hugely impressed by and it’s comparable to your outstanding pair of Bristols 😉

[@EndeavorsDnB]

Not the only “IDriveAClassic” is pretty decent too.

[@Treviscoe]

@@EndeavorsDnB Yes, and Hub Nut and something 27 (Jack's channel) are good too.

[@jameslynch7826]

I had the pleasure of looking around the old Bristol sales room in Kensington about twenty years ago- sheer class and quality.

[@nickhart8154]

Bristol’s are fantastic cars. I have a 95 Blenheim in Houston Texas which I think is the only Blenheim in the US. Admittedly not as good pretty as a 411 but it turns heads everywhere and the ride is perfect for the US roads.

[@fanbatcher]

How did you get it into the country?

[@rob1tnt]

Get Doug DeMuro to review it!

[@mescko]

@@fanbatcher If it's over 25 years old it can be legally imported with having to comply with either EPA or DOT regulations.

[@robertp.wainman4094]

Ah, Bristol.....the car you'd tend to see in a back street of Kensington and few other places - the ultimate piece of understated Englishness! Just the name 'Bristol' conjures up not only the car company, but also the Bristol Aircraft company and Bristol Commercial Vehicles....manufacturers of perhaps the finest buses in Britain!

[@MerciaAnglii-x6u]

I'm not too proud to say that I’m envious that he's managed to get his hands on a pair of Bristols!

[@adrianjowett6941]

I have been looking for a review of a Bristol 411 for years, years. Thank you!!

[@davekennedy6315]

Very, very nice pair of Bristols! I've always been intrigued by Bristol, very odd looking and incredibly expensive. Now I get to see what they're all about, thanks Jay! Yet again you give us another roadtest on a car that is as far from the mainstream as it is possible to get. You diamond!

[@redfred70]

Nice video - so pleased you did the pair of Bristols gag ! Bristol Cars were a client of mine in the 1990's, used to really enjoy meeting the MD, Tony Crook, an ex F1 driver, a real character and a bit eccentric. At a motor industry event, all delegates were given a name badge, with Tony particularly amused as his read ‘A Crook’. At one motor show he dressed as a Middle Eastern monarch and placed fake orders on cars at a rival’s stand while at another it was said he had someone dress and smell like a vagrant and then hang around on a rival stand. Tony sold his stake in Bristol Cars in 1997 and passed away in 2014.

[@Battery-Powered]

Amazed by the design and specs of that car 400hp! 143mph max speed. it's 50 year old !

[@sportzntouring]

12:05 Damani caught a nice shot there! Nice one! -Ant

[@simonelliott5956]

Love it, an unsung classic hero! I’ve always loved them for their uniqueness and refusal to change their methods, Kensington High Street just isn’t the same without that beautiful old school classy showroom!

[@laurieharper1526]

I went in there one day many years ago. Told the staff I had no hope of ever buying one of their creations but loved cars and wanted to have a look. They were very welcoming - showed me around and told me all about the company and its history.

[@bigal3055]

Jay has got his Bristols out again.

[@will89687]

Welcome to Bristol City!

[@JamesCairney]

Jay just borrowed them, someone else got their Bristols out, for the lads. And I'm glad they did. Its a nice sight.

[@chrisgriffin205]

James I love the fact that you review cars that are actually affordable. No 2,000 HP 300 MPH piece of idiocy that you have to be a petro prince to own. Well done! I really enjoy some of the older cars (Lotus Europa) as they are from my era. Cheers

[@michaelsternberg1274]

Another informative and hugely attractive video; my wife and I used a 411 series 3 as a daily driver for 17 years until 1997, but towards the end, the service & repair costs were stupendous, so sadly it had to go. Overall the experience was a delight!

[@Steinstra-vj7wl]

Classic and stylish - Still a beautiful car in our time. Strange we didn't hear or see much of Bristol's history.

[@sdry1688]

Another fabulous review Jay and a car I've been lucky enough to experience. I was on the tools in the early 80s and we had a customer who owned a brace of 411s. As a point of interest the 1974 Autumn UK Motor Show price for a 411 was £9816- while the Interceptor was £8400 and the AM V8 £11349

[@SuperBullyone]

the Bristol 411 body design and interior is perfect. it would be nice to own a renovated one of these cars.

[@m7dgz]

Love this era of Bristol - the 411 basically set the course that Bristol Cars then followed for the best part of 40 years, as almost all of the models that followed were warmed over versions of the 411 (you can really see it in the Blenheim that they were still knocking out in the late 2000s). It's amazing that they managed to keep the company going so long making really a handful of cars - there was talk of "no more than three cars a week" but the reality was that with models like the Blenheim, they only made 30 or so in something like 12 years! A lot of that was down to Tony Crook who owned and ran the company from the 70s through to the early 2000s - I got to meet him once, totally eccentric and fascinating! Shame that none of the iterations of ownership since his era have managed to keep the company going...

[@Tomislav_B.]

I remember couple of years ago when I asked you when are you gonna feature a Bristol on the channel you said "probably never" and now you're on your third one! A gorgeous car, lot prettier than later Blenheim model, I really enjoyed thanks! I always love your TVR, Lotus, Bristol and other GB cars videos. Some Morgan maybe in future, Aero?

[@steved2008]

Wonderful, you managed to get a couple of Bristols gags in there as well, all is well with the world. 👍

[@dad2isla]

Like these old Brit classics. Would love to see Jay test a Gordon Keeble. And maybe an AC 3000ME.

[@ronyjameson8798]

This is the only channel with such verity of old new and used cars. Good work James love the channel we are subbed for more.

[@allosaurusfragilis7782]

I used to own a jag xj c, with the 5.3 v12 engine. A remarkable vehicle indeed. I described it as being like a cross between a hovercraft and chernobyl power station to drive and own. To be honest I was quite glad to sell it. I bit the hand off the first caller , thinking I was lucky to get one. The phone kept ringing for weeks afterwards with interested buyers. ...but it had caused me so much grief that j didn't care. On a good day it was magnificent but looking back I'd much rather have owned that Bristol.

[@GadgetyMV]

Been waiting for the 411. Very interesting! Such a stylish yet formal design. Earlier 411s with the oval taillights are even better looking. Totally usable on a daily basis, as you say. Parts for the Chrysler engines are available for the original engine 383 or 400 cu in. There are a lot of after market options, performance options, aluminium heads, stroker kits, complete engines, or short blocks etc, providing far more power than the chassis could take. A fully assembled, blueprinted, alu head 383 providing 400+ horsepower and running on today's petrol is available in the US for less than $6000. It would be fun if you get a targa 412 in for a drive, one of the... oddest looking cars and a Zagato design no less. Seating four adults in waftable style is what makes these cars great. BTW the exhaust pipes on the 411 are fake, the exhaust exits down. Cost is with the aluminium body, and chassis, which tend to rot at the rear.

[@MathsYknow]

Re the fake exhausts, that explains why the dust was being stirred up from underneath the exhausts when JM revved the car at 1:22 =)

[@duckrutt]

This ones a 5.9 so the good old LA block 360. Can you get 400 out of one? Sure. Does the one in this car probably have about 250? yeah.

[@KEITHTARA]

@@duckrutt Standard Magnum 360 was about 255. With an ECU upgrade, bigger valves and a fast-road camshaft, over 300bhp is easily available (the 400bhp quoted maybe be a gross power figure, so for net deduct about 50-70bhp)

[@kevincoombs7348]

In the "60/70's I sold aluminium to Bristol Cars Filton and often saw company owner Anthony Crook test driving prototypes, always with reg 100MPH and MPH100. Good race history, the company and the man.

[@jamesonslow]

"Fine pair of Bristols" - well done there, sir.

[@seancooke7332]

You must be the only chap who actually drives a Bristol on film. That in itself is an achievement. They are all wonderful and you do look good at the wheel of one.

[@FFVoyager]

Gentlemen need to address themselves to much of the late Leonard Setright's prolific output. I suggest you start with his seminal tome 'Bristol Cars and Engines'.

[@johnmarsh2078]

Love the Minx/SuperMinx/Alpine/Sceptre rear lights. They look absolutely right for the car.

[@darrenhitchcox6345]

A fine pair of Bristol's indeed JayEmm. A friend of mine that worked in the Bristol at Bristol many years back told me about the 411 they dropped!! It has spent a few weeks undergoing bodywork for a full restoration and was being loaded up a ramp and it fell off, damaging the car. He said the whole workforce leapt into the action to help out and 2 days later and some very late nights, no damage was to be found, such was the teamwork at the factory. It was never spoke of again !!!

[@JayEmmOnCars]

That sounds like Bristol to me!

[@charliegardner6804]

Wow! What an absolutely beautiful machine. Great video thanks for sharing 👍.

[@PaulabJohnson]

I was waiting for the pair of Bristols gag. You didn't disappoint.

[@Dunkelzeitgeist]

What a lovely machine that is! I still ache for a Rover P5B but this is like the more attractive and expensive cousin

[@Steven-p4j]

She really is a very elegant car. The most significant Bristol, I am familiar with, was an all aluminium unit with a cyclopian third headlight. The all aluminium construction makes sense from their earlier incarnation as an aircraft builder of some note. The most significant thing about it, is the fact that I still recall it 60 years later.

[@mrdainase]

Seems a lot of people are rightly jealous of you getting your hands on such a lovely pair of Bristols. If they were in my garage I'd spend most days going in for a sneaky peek at them. Choosing between a 411 and a XJ12-C is an interesting shout too, and as much as I am a Jag man it wouldn't be a snap decision at all.

[@n0w3lly90]

I think you probably have around 100% of actual Bristol road tests on KZbin, JayEmm... but fair play for dipping toes in the River Avon, because, there is so much secretive mystery around these cars

[@JayEmmOnCars]

I've loved every minute!

[@n0w3lly90]

@@JayEmmOnCars Brigand, Blenheim and Beaufighter next, JayEmm... hopefully you can find some to do thorough tests on? 😊

[@gdfggggg]

Your short reminds me of a 1970’s dish cloth, not to distract from your confident and entertaining presentation.

[@martinclapton2724]

Always loved the 411 right from the 1970s obviously hasn’t changed a great deal through the various revisions/series. When something is right, why change it. Timeless elegance never goes out of fashion.

[@robertrishel3685]

Beautiful car!! How could you not be in love with it? ❤

[@kaga1310]

Fantastic weather in a gorgeous Bristol. I am in love too. Greetings from Germany.

[@JRGRAY-33]

Always liked them Bristols, wish I'd bought one back in the day. Bought a 3 litre Ford Capri instead

[@martinlaver007]

Not often you see two Bristols on the same bit of road! Nice.

[@lenleathers5482]

Seeing that model takes me back, i did my apprenticeship at Park Royal,

[@jamieboyd448]

My grandad had a couple of these over the years. Amazing cars! American V8

[@Tomm9y]

Great to see the locally made Dodo Juice on the video. Interesting cars.

[@JDWDMC]

My boss at Ford (36 years ago) became an engineer via an apprenticeship at Bristol. Was a lovely chap.

[@juliankent8875]

Awesome James. That brings back memories of my Dads. He had a 1972 series 2. That had single head lights though. He sold it to a guy in Cornwall in 1996. LBY 762K. I've never looked if it's still on the road. Dad used it a lot and it always attracted attention because most people didn't know what it was.

[@juliankent8875]

@Richard Harrold great detective work Richard. I'll try and dig an old photo out and check that the reg is right, but I'm fairly sure it is.

[@warlock242]

I think your channel has grown into something really good. You're like the British Doug DeMuro, which is always gonna be different but on the same level.

[@flyinghedgehog3833]

Just dropping by the Claremont for a spot of Baccarat old boy...with my old chum lucky Lucan.

[@rob1tnt]

Ive always been fascinated a bit fascinated by Bristol, the latter cars might not be as pretty but i still absolutely love them. They always seem to be the forgotten brand in the long list of independent UK cars.

[@elizabethcherry920]

I still would like to see a review of the Bristol Beaufort, 412 ,or even the targa model Bristol made in the 80s . Great video

[@DavidJohnson-gh3si]

As you said, a fabulous pair!

[@johnfh]

An excellent video of a lovely car, thanks a lot. Greetings from an ex 407 owner.

[@ilBumble]

Finally! Been waiting on this for ages! Now get us a Bleinhem too 😁

[@mbishton]

I’ve got a Blenheim 2 which James can review 👍🏻

[@user-ht5hy6zq2l]

That would be great!

[@aftastosk6016]

Very nice review indeed, however I really believe that you should try a Blenheim. They are excellent cars I am told by a happy owner (living in North London) and quite an experience to drive and own.

[@KEITHTARA]

A few months ago, I went to a Bristol Owners meet. A company that specialise in Bristols had a customer car there. A gorgeous 411 series 5 fitted with an LS3 and modern auto box. Much lighter and faster apparently. It also had a genuine 400bhp on tap..........

[@simonphillips5208]

The very car is on Car and Classic right now. A beauty.

[@DavidJohnson-gh3si]

Lovin’ the Hillman Minx rear lights! Seriously though, an excellent review of an excellent car. Ta!

[@The-Sea-Dragon-1977]

I used to stick my head into their service workshop at Chiswick in the early 2000's. Beautiful workmanship put into slightly odd looking cars that I couldn't afford.

[@flappospammo]

Love to see you test some of their later models with their 'challenging' design ...

[@vicjones3992]

My 411 will skin that thing alive....and most other 70s 4-seaters I have a 5-speed manual with a 360 stroked to 408 with edelbrock total top end, uprated Hi-Spec brakes and other improvements including tyres - it gets to 60 in under 5 seconds, stops on a sixpence and will do welll over 160 mph 80mph in top is 200rpm That one needs fettling obviously

[@GadgetyMV]

@Vic Jones How about a video or some pictures? Have you done anything to the suspension, and what kind of wheels/tyres do you run?

[@Rog5446]

I've driven 6 V8 Bristols and the series II was the best.

[@MF-jp5vp]

Love the tyre test.....reminds me of my first car😁

[@SabotsLibres]

Like many small-scale manufacturers, Bristol weren't afraid to raid other peoples parts bins - check out the Hillman Super Minx tail-lights! (Oh well, Hillman [Rootes] were a part of Chrysler, so essentially it was the same bin as the engine!)

[@user-ht5hy6zq2l]

Blenheims had taillights from a Senator. Many small volume manufacturers do this; it cuts down on development costs. The Aston Martin DB7 has taillights from a Mazda 323, the Virage from a Scirocco, the V8/Vantage from a Hillman Hunter etc.

[@DavidColex]

@@user-ht5hy6zq2l You're correct! Sorry.

[@SabotsLibres]

@@user-ht5hy6zq2l It's been the norm almost from the beginning of bespoke parts (before the fifties, many parts - particularly lighting - were just bought in from manufacturers like Smiths, Jaeger and Lucas). The Lotus Europa used bumpers from the 105E Anglia, column switchgear from a Triumph Herald etc.

[@johnbeaven8951]

The Aston Martin DBS from the late 60's/ early 70's has MK2 Cortina side light/ indicator units.

[@mw8653]

Never liked the interior door latches looked like they came out of a Austin Maxi the chrome door levers in the 410 looked better to be honest so did the front end and Bluemels steering wheel lovely cars wish I brought one when they prices was affordable.

[@vladansretenovic1952]

What a car, I have always loved them❤

[@TIMSANDYSURF]

Great to see a pair of Bristols.

[@DMSJagXK]

Quite apt having a Bristol on your channel.

[@shanehnorman]

Majestic grand tourer, but I'd love to have seen the unique Bristol 'side-pods'. The lower half of each front wing, from the wheel-arch to the door, lifts up to reveal, on one side, the battery etc and, on the other, the spare tyre. The arrangement was common to all of the 400 series cars.

[@poppyneese1811]

I’d never ever heard of the Bristol Brand of Cars, how many manufacturers were in England, good Lord had to be more than the rest world combined. It’s typically British Beautiful!

[@costelloandsilke7321]

The 411 was the best looking of the post BMW engined Bristols and the Series 3 with the oval tail lights was the best looking of all. Brilliant cars and sadly missed.

[@pantheraleo2490]

Love these reviews of unusual cars 👍🏻

[@victorkhong7654]

Me too! Always had a soft spot for rebel Brit cars (Bristol, Jensen, Caterham, Noble, Ultima)

[@Jeremy-q9j]

James , as a 69 tear old who has owned both a 1971 , 411 and a 1978 , 412 targa I feel you are a free loader .

[@malcolmhardwick4258]

Love everything about it !

[@Treviscoe]

Good video James. As for the company not keeping up with its rivals in the 80s and 90s though, I think the company's owner, Tony Crook, was very much a law unto himself (if you were being flattering, you would have called him one of the motoring industry's great characters). Nothing was ever going to go into or change with a Bristol unless he wanted it to. I think it's also fair to say that most of the company's customers probably liked it that way.

[@andygtv]

Very cool cars 😀👍well done for mentioning no one seems to

[@Mr_Boaty]

Ah, I was brought up around Bristol motor cars. Indeed, I was damned nearly born in one in a snowdrift in Snowdonia! I certainly travelled home from the maternity unit in one, and the first car I drove was a 412 Beaufighter. ‘Bristol’ Brian May was my Dad’s best friend, and his place was a second home. Later on when I ran the showrooms and auction house I recall Quentin Willson dropping in when I’d just launched the first online auction website in early ‘95. I’d tried to interview Tony Crook for a website feature, and he’d tried to do him for Top Gear…both equally unsuccessfully. He told me he’d stormed out shouting “I haven’t tried to tell you how to make f***ing cars, so don’t you tell me how to make a f***ing television programme!”. Happy days, and it’s jolly nice to see a few popping up on my iDevice, so I thank you for that.

[@malcolmhardwick4258]

When I see you next to a Bristol it all makes sense !

[@paulsutton5896]

So how many of these resurrection 411s did they build? And how much did they sell for. It was certainly the pinnacle of elegant design.

[@andrewfrench4087]

Nice vid. 411 has long been one of my favourites. I personally would have gone for the 2 brake light spec though !

[@marvin4827]

Gr8 video as usual James. Very informative & well researched. So snooty celebrity review here. Keep them coming...

[@gunnarliljas8459]

It's indeed the last okay looking Bristol. It looks very British, in a cozy way. The models that followed seemed to designed with the motto "If we can't beat Aston with spectacular performance, we can at least make our cars spectacularly ugly. That'll show them!"

[@1258-Eckhart]

Absolutely true. On the later cars, nothing lines up with anything else, they look like the proverbial dog's dinner.

[@TheMrFishnDucks]

Absolutely amazing car. For me it would have to be a more fun colour. You’re right with the 5 speed automatic and better tires this could have been a daily. I love these restomoded cars. Nice video. Keep up the good work.

[@sevesellors2831]

Cool video cool car , Bristol the brand for gentlemen, understated and classy.

[@raypurchase801]

Bristols are for people who regard Rolls-Royces as too common. Some people drive their cars like they own the road. In the case of Bristol owners, they probably do actually own the road. But, being Bristol owners, they're much too polite to say so.

[@johnfisk811]

A gentleman’s grand tourer not a GT. To travel fast but comfortably gently but quickly whoosh along not roar as you scratch around the road. Huzzah for Bristol.

[@richardsheil5289]

Love the Triumph Air vents

[@michaelguerin56]

Thank you. A nice honest video. Quite refreshing after all the garbage TV car programmes that purport to tell the viewers about cars.

[@grandadneal8114]

always keen to see some bristols

[@wrathofbod]

looking good, very similar to a Gilbern(Welsh Car Manufaturer) in my opinion

[@kevincoombs7348]

Love the 411 and 603. Being Bristolian I guess I am biased, but wow what character

[@ranjanaluwihare1511]

Gosh I love the classic 404 Bristol series. The Beaufighter was bazaar styling & bit brutal rich man’s Ford Granada!? I would love to restyle this car for the 21st century a cross between an old Aston/ Bentley classic, would pull up sales for a legendary British hand built company!

[@evokki0075]

Well, my 2008 Fiat Croma had 4 ash trays too. Not sure if they were ever used tho.

[@lonewarrior1543]

Just maybe a world first...these cars were never given to car magazines for testing...good one Jay!

[@JayEmmOnCars]

Better late than never!

[@simonwheatley3351]

I have a book "Bristol Cars - Gold Portfolio 1946-1992" which is a collection of reprints of in-period road tests, including Motor, Autocar, Motor Sport and others. So back in those days, Bristols were available to car magazines. No idea when it stopped.. Tony Crook probably took offence to a report and stopped it!

[@martian9999]

yes, but Setright was ever-enthusiastic, even vociferous, so even without proper tests, the word got out

[@wjekat]

I stayed at the Hilton Olympia a few times during the early 00‘s and was always intrigued by the odd car showroom which was set in the corner of the building. Quite shabby but the car displayed was obviously horribly expensive, so I never dared to walk in. Stupid me, I really should have asked for a brochure. Tony Crook probably would have thrown me out!😂 On the way to Heathrow, the cab would always pass the Bristol garage in Hammersmith until many years later it too simply vanished. In many ways Bristol cars remind me of the hotel in the same building, shiny and cool in the sixties, dodgy and worn out by the new millennium.

[@philippeXJC4L2]

As an XJ-C owner I would love to try and drive a 411.

[@hendo337]

I think I would prefer the 400 B block engine heated up with Holley Sniper EFI for reliability and better economy. I'm sure that with aluminum heads+intake manifold, the compression ratio increased close to 11:1 and a well chosen camshaft it could be relatively fuel efficient with a 0.50:1 top gear 6 speed manual transmission and still produce an easy 400-500hp at the crank.

[@paulmclaughlin4092]

Great review! Please do a Jag MK 10 if you ever get the opportunity!

[@johnball4826]

These cars were hand built for discerning gentlemen of the old money generations.

[@jeremyjehu4372]

A generation ago, I wrote a satirical thriller called The Monday Lunchtime of the Living Dead. It was set in 1999 and the anti-hero drove a 1972 Bristol 411 which he had just had supercharged. Monday Lunchtime was quite well received, except by Tony Crook, who accused the anti-hero of "vandalism" and said he should have had Bristol drop the 5.9 litre into it instead. He was quite irate. I pointed out that the anti-hero was a not particularly sympathic fictional creation and that the "vandalism" was a deliberate conceit to help establish his character. I'm not sure he took my point. In fact, I'm entirely convinced that he didn't. I was driving a 1969 Rover P5B at the time and the 411 was the luxury I was too sensible (mean?) to afford.

[@HiNRGboy]

I'll take the Bristol over the Jaguar any day! Beautiful car...and really interesting company. Both of those Bristols shown here some of my dream cars for sure! :)