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33rd Historic Winton - Bentley's 90 Years Print E-mail
Monday, 04 May 2009
 


Ninety Years of Bentley 1919 - 2009

From the moment that the first 3 litre Bentley engine roared into life in 1919 to the wonderful Le Mans Victory of 2003, the fortunes of Bentley have been a roller coaster ride of intrigue, despair, amazing comebacks and passionate dedication.  Its history reads better than a Hollywood thriller.

Created by engineering genius Walter Owen Bentley, the vehicle optimised everything that was good about British Motor Sport.  The Bentley was reliable, solidly built, docile in city traffic but also capable of brutal acceleration and staggering speed.

Within four years of inception, Bentley sporting models had attracted a young and daring group of ‘Gentleman Racers’ who became known as the Bentley Boys.

Often seen as 'playboys', they oozed wealth and charisma but also had immense driving talent and kept the Bentley reputation for high-performance sporting vehicles alive.

The first Le Mans victory for Bentley occurred in 1924 with a 3 litre model.  This was followed by a period of rather poor fortune until 1927, when the Bentley speed six racers swept everything behind them in a stunning four year period of dominance at Le Mans.  Wolf Barnoto won Le Mans three years in a row in 1928, 1929 and 1930.

Further success followed at Brooklands in 1931 when Sir Henry Birkin lapped the circuit at more than 220 kph in his 4.5 litre single seater Bentley.

Just imagine two tons of motor car, huge and rugged, careering around the banked track with the screaming wail of the supercharger rising above the tremendous roar of the engine.

The Original Bentley Motors Limited only existed for a period of 12 years; however, the ‘Roaring Twenties’ and Bentley went together like nothing else.  It was a complement to the crazy aftermath of World War I and when the twenties ended, the Bentley was ended.  It had been a short life, a whirlwind of extreme success and financial problems.
 
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