A brief history of Bentley Motors

W.O. Bentley and Bentley Motors

Bentley Motors Limited was founded in England by Walter Owen Bentley on the 18th January 1919. Known as W.O. Bentley or just "W.O.". W.O started engineering as a railway apprentice engineer and was later known for his design of the Bentley BR1 rotary engine as fitted to later Sopwith Camels in World War I. During development on the front line W.O had to duck for cover as the notorious Red Baron strafed the airfield. It is ironic that a year later, it is claimed that a Camel was to shoot down the Baron.

In 1912, he founded Bentley and Bentley so as to import and sell French cars with his brother Horace Millner. W.O became dissatisfied with their performance and begun re-engineering them, later in 1921 Bentley Motors started manufacturing and selling cars of his own design.

Millionaire 'Bentley Boy', Woolf Barnato took over the floundering Bentley in 1925 but in 1931 Bentley was sold to Rolls-Royce as Bentley struggled in the Great Depression. In 1998 the Volkswagen Group took over the ownership of Bentley Motors Limited.

The Bentley Boys

Thanks to a small group of gentlemen racers fondly known as the "Bentley Boys", Bentley became known for their sporting prowess. In 1924 Frank Clement and John Duff won the 24 hour race at Le Mans. In 1927 Bentley won their first of four consecutive 24 hour Le Mans races, driven by Sammy Davis, an Autocar writer and Dudley Benjafield. Bentley won the following three Le Mans at the hands of Woolf Barnato and Bernard Rubin in 1928, Woolf Barnato and Henry Birkin in 1929 and Woolf Barnato and Glen Kidston in 1930. Although W. O. Bentley despised superchargers also known as 'blowers', his "Bentley Boys" wanted to supercharge the engine for more power and in 1929 the first 'Blower' Bentley was built. It was too thirsty and unreliable to win at Le Mans though.

"there's no replacement for displacement"
-W.O. Bentley

The Blue Train Bentley

In 1930 Woolf Barnato wagered £200 that his Bentley Speed Six could beat the express train, Le Train Bleu, from Cannes to London. He bet his Bentley, would arrive in London before the French train had arrived at Calais. He beat the Blue Train by four minutes.

James Bond's Bentley

James Bond owned a "blown" battleship grey 4½ litre Bentley which he drove in Ian Fleming's Casino Royale, Live and Let Die and Moonraker