Bentley is an automaker with over 100 years of history, meaning it has many generations worth of historic models. To pay homage to its past, Bentley's Heritage Collection has taken on some incredible restoration projects, including building a brand-new 4½ Litre Blower model for the first time in nearly a century. Bentley also merged its past and present by converting a 1961 S3 Continental Flying Spur into a fully electric car.

For its next big project, Bentley will take its first-ever T-Series (a precursor to the modern Bentley Flying Spur), and give it a complete wheels-up restoration. The car was originally built on September 28, 1965, and owned by Bentley Motors for development work. Bentley found the T-Series in non-running condition after years in storage and has since repaired the 6¼-litre pushrod V8 to fire up for the first time in over 15 years.

The V8 originally debuted in 1959 under the hood of the Bentley S2, where it had the highest specific output by weight of any production car in the world (2.7 pounds per horsepower). This motor's design was so reliable, it carried on in production for five more decades, culminating with the Mulsanne Speed where it produced a whopping 537 hp and 811 lb-ft of torque.

Bentley began the restoration process for T-Series VIN 001 back in 2016, removing trim pieces and reconditioning the body-in-white. The project was paused as Bentley focused on its future electrification plans, but a renewed focus on the Heritage Collection will allow the company to continue the restoration.

Bentley predicts the rejuvenation process will take more than 18 months and wrap up in 2023, at which point the T-Series will join Bentley's expansive Heritage Collection, which is a spectacular treat for all who happen to see it. The UK marque will keep the car as original as possible, mimicking the original Shell Grey exterior paint scheme and Blue leather interior. When it's complete, this T-Series will be a priceless collectible with a one-of-a-kind history, but put your checkbook back in your pocket - this is worth far more in sentimental value than any number of commas and zeroes could. Well, almost any.