Bentley in the post war era
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Promotional film for the launch of
the Bentley Turbo R in America in 1989
The Bentley Mark V1 was the company's first post war car and proved very popular
After the war, production of Bentley
cars was transferred to Crewe
Bentley raised its profile by its appearance
at major international car shows
The Bentley S1 was launched in 1955
Duration of video: 3 mins. 1 second
Bentley's Flying B has been one of the
most recogniseable car badges for decades
The stylish Continental R type was launched in 1952
The Bentley Continental in 1961
The Continental S1 in 1956
A personalised licence plate for
those unsure of the car's identity
The unique Franay Bentley was restored in the early 1990s and is now one of the most valuable Bentleys in the world
The R Type drophead Continental coupe of 1953
During the 1990s even though there were very few cars still on the road, there were still annual shows
The Bentley T1 in 1966
(c) Universal Motoring History Enterprises
Having sealed its position in British motoring folklore before the war with its successes at Le Mans, Bentley could look forward to a bright future after World War 2, especially as it was now firmly under the control of the Rolls Royce company, following the financial difficulties it got into during the economic depression.
After the war, production of all Rolls Royce cars switched to Crewe and the first Bentley car which was produced was the MK VI, with its six-cylinder, 4¼ litre engine, built into a large chassis, fitted with independent front suspension.
It had a standard steel body and was brought out with the sole intention of trying to earn the company as much money as quickly as possible, and as sales took off, it proved to be the right car for the time.
Le Mans
To help increase sales, the company also decided to return to Le Mans, which it duly did in 1949 after a 10 year break. The car that raced was the Bentley Embiricos which finished a creditable 6th, and
The next production car was the 'R' Type, named for no other reason than the chassis number suffix range had reached the letter 'R'. The company had also been working on a special lightweight version which would achieve 120 mph -the fastest car of its type in the world at the time and a remarkable achievement for a full four-seater. This was the ubiquitous 'R' Type Continental, a stunning looking transcontinental tourer, clothed in the most eye-catching of coach work which was designed by HJ Mulliner. In total, 208 car were built and they represented a pinnacle for the marque in the early post-war era.
The next car was the S1 Continental which had a six cylinder engine, now up to 4.9 litres, and was mounted onto a new chassis and had an automatic gearbox as standard.
While Rolls Royce had by now ensured that the Bentley marque was a respected name in the luxury sports car market, a downturn in sales in the mid 1960s saw the company take a new direction with the launch of the Rolls Royce Silver Shadow, with the 'T' type being the Bentley variant, although sales never picked up.
Changes were made and in 1977, the 'T' series became the 'T2'. But it was only after the car and aero engine sides at Rolls Royce were split that the fortunes of Bentley took an upturn with sales gradually increasing.
The original monocoque design of the 'T' Series was reworked, the engine bored out to 6.75 litres, and a new car was born, the Bentley Turbo Mulsanne.
But the company was still a long way from its position of the 1950s. In fact, by the 1970s, Bentley represented a paltry 5% of Rolls Royce’s total annual sales, with most of the output not much more than rebadged existing Rolls Royce models.
Bentley Continental R
The big change came with the launch of the sumptuous Bentley Continental Turbo R. This was an ultra-luxurious machine which weighed 2.5 tons, was more than 17 feet long and was powered by a 6.7 litre V8 engine.
It was critically acclaimed for its design, looks and performance and proved successful on both sides of the Atlantic, even though, at £160,000, it was the most expensive British car to date.
Volkswagen
In the mid 1990s, the Azure was launched, which was effectively a convertible version of the Continental and this further helped to ensure that by the end of the 20th Century, Bentley had well and truly returned to being one of the world’s great luxury sports car marques. As it had also been purchased by Volkswagen, it also now had the financial backing to ensure a prosperous future.
Bentleys often have their own
section at the main Rolls Royce shows
Many US owners have opted for more striking
colour schemes than is the case with British owners
The new Bentley Continental R was launched in 1989
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