Although the legendary ‘W.O.’ Bentley cars built a fine reputation in a mere ten years, they were not a commercial success, so after the company had run through at least three tranches of capital, it went broke for the last time in 1931. After a rather sordid courtroom battle, Bentley was bought up by Rolls-Royce, and re-developed in its own image. There was a two year hiatus, while the last surviving ‘W.O.’ cars were bodied and sold off, and a new model was developed.
The cars which appeared in 1933 shared only a radiator badge with their earlier namesakes. Marketed under the banner of the ‘Silent Sports Car’, the first ‘Rolls-Bentley’ (or ‘Derby Bentley’) was the 3H- litre model of 1933, which leaned heavily on the existing Rolls-Royce 20/25 model for its running gear. The two cars, however, had little in common. Although they shared the same basic 3.7-litre six-cylinder engine, that used in the Bentley was much-modified and more powerful (we were never told how powerful, though). This was used with the Rolls-Royce transmission in a new chassis which, in spite of what the traditionalists might say, was much lighter and more capable than ever before.
The new Bentleys were bodied by independent coachbuilders, a good proportion being clothed by Park Ward, Barker and Gurney Nutting, each producing noticeably more rakish styles than anything normally committed to a Rolls-Royce base. |
 |
Although prices crept up in the years which followed, an early 3H-litre would cost about £1,500 to put on the road – a price which one should compare with the £100 Ford 8 hp saloon of the period.
To call it a ‘sports car’, would stretch the point, but this new Bentley was certainly a fast and capable ‘grand tourer’. A 90 mph top speed, which was normal for these original cars, was very fast by the standards of the day. The Bentley’s character, too, was very light and appealing, something proved by the hundreds of cars which still survive.
As competition increased, and as the weight of the cars inexorably crept up, more performance was needed, so from 1936, the 4G-litre model took over (with a 4,257 cc engine), while a four-speed ‘overdrive’ gearbox was standardised from 1938, though none ever achieved 100 mph in standard coachwork form. By the summer of 1939 the range was at the height of its fame, and its replacement by a brand new generation Rolls–Bentley was only prevented by the outbreak of the Second World War with Hitler’s Germany.
In six years nearly 2,500 Bentleys were produced, 1,191 of them the original 3H-litre types.
The new Bentleys were fast, capable of a top speed of 90 mph. These were light and appealing cars, sharing the same radiator badge as the ‘W.O.’ Bentleys.
|
