Gooding: Oldest surviving production Bentley sold at auction in Pebble Beach

The 1921 three-liter Bentley known as chassis No. 3--believed to be the oldest surviving production car and the first customer car from the marque--is now a collector's item.

Chassis No. 3 sold for $962,500 off the Gooding & Co. auction block during Pebble Beach week in Monterey, Calif. We're still trying to track down some information on the buyer and the seller.

The car's first owner (and Bentley's first customer) paid the American equivalent of $1,896 at the time of its delivery, which would equal about $23,000 today based on the consumer price index.

At 90 years old, chassis No. 3 is said to be in immaculate condition, and it comes with an impressive pedigree. Notable wins throughout decades of racing include the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race in 1924 and 1927.

Gooding describes the matching-numbers car as wearing original aluminum coachwork and brass brightwork, with signature design cues from the brand throughout.

Monterey car week is packed with car shows, vintage racing and car auctions. Autoweek will be there providing streaming photo galleries and live coverage of the Pebble Beach Concours, historic racing at Laguna Seca, the Monterey car auctions and plenty more. Go to autoweek.com/pebblebeach for complete coverage and live updates.

By Michelle Koueiter