Kochi: Some engines hum. Some purr. A 100-year-old Bentley does neither, it announces itself by growling low and deep before rising into a thunderous rhythm that feels less like machinery and more like a mechanical heart forged in an age when cars were shaped by craftsmen and speed was an act of courage. 

On Wednesday, that raw symphony rolled along the palm-fringed backwaters of Kochi, slowing traffic not with horns, but with history and awe.

At the wheel of two pre-war titans, a 1926 and a 1927 Bentley Speed Six, are Robert Wilkinson (63) and John Walton (72) of Leicester, United Kingdom. Grey-haired and sharp-eyed, they sit high behind vast steering wheels, they are not simply driving cars; they are steering history across continents. In an age of silent electric motors and digital dashboards, they prove that while time marches on, true legends only grow louder.

They reached Mumbai on February 4, got the cars shipped, as part of the Indian chapter of their world tour, and began driving south, cutting through Goa, Karnataka and Kerala. After staying in Wayanad and Kozhikode, they reached Kochi on Tuesday. Their journey is not a rally, nor a race. It is a rolling tribute to the endurance of metal and men alike while exploring the world.

For Robert, this odyssey began long before the first ignition. "My connection to this car was because my grandfather worked for somebody who had a Bentley as it was not affordable for all. In the 1920s, British engineer WO Bentley crafted machines that were the ultimate status symbol; a single car cost approximately £2,000, a staggering sum at a time," according to Robert. When a horse, which was widely used for transport, cost only £200 to £300, Robert notes with a grin, "you could have bought four or five horses for this one car back then," he told Onmanorama as he cranked the engine at the CGH Beach Gate Bungalow in Fort Kochi on Wednesday.

That sense of grandeur still lingers in the long bonnet and the polished steel. Robert's 6.5-litre masterpiece still produces around 160 BHP under the hood and cruises smoothly at 100 kilometres per hour. It "drives like a modern car and it's as comfortable as a modern car," he said.

But romance comes at a price. The Bentley is a thirsty beast, consuming a litre of petrol every three kilometres, hence the necessity of its modern-day shadow. Trailing the two roaring classics is a rugged Toyota Land Cruiser, purchased by Robert in Cape Town. It is no mere luggage carrier. It is, as he puts it, a literal "supply house" on wheels.

Driven by Daniel, a Mumbai fuel station owner, the duo met upon arrival and promptly "dragged away" to assist them. The Land Cruiser carries a massive auxiliary petrol tank and a full inventory of wearable spares like exhaust gaskets, cables, brake pads, filters, and spark plugs. "It carries all the spares for these old Bentleys," Robert said.

Daniel, who often organises trips, didn't hesitate when invited. "In whichever country we visit, we have local support there. Here it is Daniel, who drives the Land Cruiser and our guide," John said.

Without this rolling lifeline, the adventure would stall quickly. In fact, John's Bentley recently required parts to be flown in from the UK after a highway mishap. But breakdowns are just punctuation marks in a story this big. "We had only two breakdowns so far and we managed easily," Robert said.

Robert's world tour began at age 50, when he shipped his Bentley to New York for what he thought would be a "gap year". More than a decade later, the gap has become a way of life.

The cars have roared from the neon lights of Las Vegas to the frozen wilds of Alaska, crossed the high-altitude Andes and the Atacama Desert, rolled over Bolivia's salt plains, toured Australia and New Zealand, and then journeyed through Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Burma, China and Mongolia. 

"Life is all about creating memories, meeting people and seeing real life. My Bentley is no longer just machinery. To me, it is priceless because of the memories it’s given me," Robert said. 

Both men have worked in the automobile industry, selling imported cars. "In fact John was my rival in the industry but we have always shared a strong friendship outside our work sector. That's what made him my travel buddy," Robert said.

Finding the 'soul' of India
According to Daniel, while most visitors chase monuments, Robert and John search for something deeper. They have visited tea and coffee plantations, watching the journey from bean to bag. They paused to observe traditional roof-tile manufacturing. In Karnataka's Kabini, Robert stepped out of the driver's seat and into a ginger field. 

"He could have very easily just stood from a distance, taken a few photos and said bye-bye. Instead, the 63-year-old hoisted a 25-kilo crate of ginger onto a truck, determined to feel the weight of Indian labour in his own hands. It is this hunger for authenticity that defines their travels," Daniel said.

John has noticed Kerala's quieter rhythm. "In the industrial regions of Mumbai and Karnataka, pollution was extremely high. But here, it is much better and far quieter. The roads are good as well. In fact, when drivers see our old Bentley approaching, they respectfully give way, often with admiration. The people here are very warm, and we have truly fallen in love with the culture, cuisine and hospitality," John said.

Maintaining a pre-war Bentley today is an act of devotion. Robert sees the market shifting. "The demand now for a 1968 Porsche or a 1972 Ferrari is really high. The demand for old Bentleys is going down. When I bought it 15 years back, it was of high demand."

Younger generations, he said, lack a personal connection to the 1920s. Skilled mechanics are disappearing too. "I have a self-taught specialist back in England who understands every bolt of the Speed Six engine. As these people retire, there's no new coming through. In another 20 years' time, I will struggle to find anybody who can repair these cars," Robert said.

From Kochi, the Bentleys now head toward Kumarakom's backwaters. They plan to complete their Kerala journey in Thiruvananthapuram by February 24 before shipping the cars to Sri Lanka. After covering Sri Lanka, they are planning to come back to India to cover the rest of the country. 

As the duo plans another 12 months on the road, the image is almost poetic: two elderly men in near-centenarian machines, chasing dreams with the stubborn vitality of youth. And somewhere between nostalgia and adventure, history keeps moving forward, at 100 kilometres per hour.