You’ve heard that there’s no replacement for displacement and nothing proves this quite like Jay Leno’s personal British-bred hot rod, a 1930 Bentley. This isn’t just any high-class vintage automobile. In fact, it’s a custom 27L creation built by Bob Peterson of England’s Peterson Engineering. Check it out in the episode of Jay Leno’s Garage above.

Now if you’re thinking you may have seen this beast of a Bentley before, chances are you remember it from the original Top Gear. While on the show, this stellar piece of machinery was put up against a BMW of similar caliber. But it’s not its Top Gear fame that makes this car truly unique. It’s the 27L Merlin aircraft engine under its ginormous hood.

Allowing this enormous plane engine to function as well as it does in this application is modern fuel injection, stainless steel headers, dual exhaust, and a modern alternator. In its current state, the engine makes about 650 to 700 hp–not bad for a car weighing three tons.

• 
• 
• 

Behind the Merlin is an automatic Allison transmission. The car also features electric power steering and giant disc brakes (disguised to look like drums) to give it even better driveability; and drive it does.

Leno admittedly drives this Bentley all over the place, even taking it on trips of a couple hundred miles or so with little worry. In fact, the engine is so under-worked in the car, that it barely hums at 1,100RPM going 60+ on the highway.

Giving the car it’s amazing looks is a classically-built wood body frame covered in stretched leather.

The interior continues the aircraft theme with airplane-esque gauges and other instrumentation. The car even has an altimeter flanking the rear view mirror. 

Truly one for the books, Leno’s 27L Bentley is certainly a stroke of genius when it comes to innovative builds. Not only is it every bit gorgeously vintage, it’s also powerful and unique enough to turn every head it passes and out-perform a good majority of the vehicles it ever sees on the road.