| Bentley 4 Litre | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Bentley Motors Limited |
| Production | 1931[1] 50 produced[1][2][3] |
| Assembly | Cricklewood, London |
| Designer | Walter Owen Bentley, Harry Ricardo |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Luxury car |
| Body style | as arranged with coachbuilder by customer[4] |
| Layout | FR layout |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 3.9 L Ricardo IOE I6 |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 134 in (3,400 mm) 140 in (3,600 mm)[1][5] |
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | 6½ Litre & Speed Six |
| Successor | 3½ Litre |
The Bentley 4 Litre was a motor car built on rolling chassis made by Bentley Motors Limited.[4] The 4 litre chassis was conceived and built in a failed attempt to restore Bentley to a good financial state. Announced 15 May 1931,[6] it used a modified four litre Ricardo IOE engine in a shortened 8 litre chassis at two-thirds of the price of the 8 Litre in an attempt to compete with the Rolls-Royce 20/25.[1][7] Instead, Bentley went into receivership shortly afterward, from which it was purchased by Rolls-Royce Limited.
The conventional straight-6 engine used an 85 mm (3.3 in) bore and a 115 mm (4.5 in) stroke for a total displacement of 3.9 L (3,915 cc (238.9 cu in))[5][8] and a power output of 120 bhp (89 kW) at 4,000 rpm.[1][5][8] The engine power was not suitable for the heavy chassis.[1][2][8]
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Lot 244: Bentley 4-Litre/8-Litre Le Mans-style Tourer". Motorbase. Hastings, UK: Classic Vehicles. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
A double-drop chassis was adopted, closely based on that of the contemporary Bentley 8-Litre, and offered in two wheelbase lengths: 11' 2" and 11' 8", both of which were shorter than the shortest of the two 8-Litre chassis available.
- ^ a b Feast, Richard (2004). "Chapter 3: Vintage Years". The DNA of Bentley. St. Paul MN USA: MotorBooks International. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-7603-1946-8. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
...only 50 4-litres were completed before Bentley Motors was acquired by Rolls-Royce.
- ^ Culshaw & Horrobin 2013, p. 82.
- ^ a b "History By Chassis – List of all W. O. Bentleys with original chassis nos. 4 Litre". VintageBentleys.Org. Houston, TX USA: VintageBentleys.org. Archived from the original on 13 April 2009. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
- ^ a b c Culshaw, David; Horrobin, Peter (2013) [1974]. "Bentley". The Complete Catalogue of British Cars 1895 - 1975 (e-book ed.). Poundbury, Dorchester, UK: Veloce Publishing. p. 81. ISBN 978-1-845845-83-4.
- ^ OUR MOTORING CORRESPONDENT. (15 May 1931). "A New Bentley". The Times (45823). London. p. 13.
- ^ Feast 2004, p. 52.
- ^ a b c "HISTORY OF MARQUES: BENTLEY - British". Sportscars.TV. 1966. Archived from the original on 6 August 2010. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
There was nothing to compalin about in the engine design, but unfortunately the very heavy 8-litre chassis was used and this resulted in a rather dull and slow car.
| Type | 1920s | 1930s | 1940s | 1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s | |||||||||||||
| Ownership | Bentley Motors Limited (1919–1931) | Rolls-Royce Bentley Motors (1931) Limited (1931–1980) | Vickers plc Rolls-Royce Bentley Motors (1931) Limited (1980–1998) | Volkswagen Group (1998–) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Coachbuilder's open 2/4 seater | 3 L | 4½ L 6½ L Speed Six | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coachbuilder's large saloon coupé or convertible | 6½ L Speed Six 8 L | 4L 3½ 4¼L Mark V | Mark VI | R | S1 S2 S3 | T | ||||||||||||||||||
| C o n t | Continental S1 Continental S2 Continental S3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cars with Bentley own-factory coachwork | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Large saloon | Mark VI | R | S1 S2 S3 | T1 | T2 | Mulsanne | Brooklands | Arnage | Mulsanne | |||||||||||||||
| Turbo R | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coupé | Corniche | Continental R/S/T | Br. | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Convertible | Corniche | Continental | Azure | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Bentleys on Volkswagen Group platforms | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Large saloon | Flying Spur | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coupé | Continental GT | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Convertible | Continental GTC | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| SUV | Bentayga | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| type /class | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 | 1930 | 1931 |
| Sports car | 3 L | ||||||||||
| 4½ L & Blower | |||||||||||
| Grand tourer | 6½ L & Speed Six | 4L | |||||||||
| Luxury vehicle | 8 L | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||