Bentley: Don’t Just Drive, Put on the Wings, FLY!

Bentley Motors was founded by Walter Owen Bentley in England in January, 1919. Racing motorcycles and combustible engines fascinated Bentley as they do many. The result was Bentley Motors. The founder seemed to be passionate and might have wanted vehicles as fast as if they have been chatting with air. Even the winged “B” badge of Bentley seems to convey the same idea.

The first car produced by the car maker had a 3-litre engine. It was considered as being far ahead of the times! The car was equipped with four cylinders, and single overhead camshaft. There were four valves per cylinder and twin-spark ignition via two magnetos.

With so passionate a founder who wanted the cars to be moving fast, no wonder Bentley primarily was a racing car. It bagged several Le Mans trophies. Besides the trophies, the races made the car even more popular. The first 3-litre car by Bentley won a highly respectable 4th!

And there was no looking back. The cars were so popular and the Bentley Motors received such a huge number of orders that even those cars that were used for demonstration purposes were sold in order to meet the ever growing demand of the customers. It only proves the car’s popularity, an unquestionably strong control over the market and of course, the competence. With all these virtues combined, the car was exceptionally successful.  

However, after the initial success, Bentley Motors fell upon hard times. The car maker suffered financial crisis. The company did produce a charming limousine. But Rolls Royce took over Bentley rather too dramatically in 1931. Nowadays, the Volkswagen Group ,a German company owns Bentley. It has been so since 1998 and the Bentleys are being produced in England at the Crewe factory.