#Bristol404

The Bristol 404 was a compact, high-performance grand tourer produced by the Bristol Aeroplane Company’s automobile division from 1953. Introduced as the sporting successor to the Bristol 403, it broke decisively with the BMW-derived styling of the marque’s earlier models and established a more distinctive Bristol identity. Its aerodynamic two-door body was mounted on a shortened chassis with a wheelbase of approximately 8 ft (2,438 mm), making the 404 considerably more compact and agile than the company’s conventional saloons. The car was powered by Bristol’s BMW 328-derived 1,971 cc overhead-valve straight-six engine, coupled to a four-speed manual gearbox. Depending on specification, the engine was available in different states of tune, while the body incorporated characteristic Bristol features such as the narrow central grille and compartments within the front wings for the spare wheel and battery. Intended as an exclusive 2+2 sports coupé, the 404 combined performance and refined construction with luxurious interior appointments, earning the unofficial nickname “the businessman’s express”. The related Bristol 405 appeared in 1955 on a longer chassis. It retained much of the 404’s mechanical and stylistic character but offered greater accommodation: the Bristol-bodied 405 saloon was the marque’s only four-door model, while the rarer two-door 405 Drophead Coupé was bodied by E. D. Abbott of Farnham. The 404 short-wheelbase chassis also formed the mechanical basis of the Bertone-bodied Arnolt-Bristol commissioned by Stanley H. “Wacky” Arnolt. 

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