1930 Bentley Speed Six news, pictures, and information

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Weyman Sportsman Coupe
Coachwork: Gurney Nutting
Chassis Num: GC 3661

This 1930 Bentley by Gurney Nutting is a Weyman Sportsman's Coupe built to special order for Lieutenant Commander Glen Kidston to drive in the 1930 Monte Carlo Rallye and other adventures.

Kidston was one of the famed 'Bentley Boys' having co-driven the Works team car with Woolf Barnato to 2nd place for Bentley at LeMans in 1929 and winning in 1930, again with co-driver Barnato.

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Tourer
Coachwork: Hooper

This is a 1930 Bentley Speed 6 Tourer with coachwork by the British based coachbuilding firm, Hooper. It was on display at the 2006 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.

Hooper was founded in 1805 with the purpose of creating coachwork for upper-class horse-drawn carriages. Their list of clients included Queen Victoria and King Edward VII. As the world switched from horse-drawn carriages to automobiles, so did Hooper. Their clientele continued to be the upper class in society and the social elite.

When the First World War broke out, they turned their craft towards the creation of aircrafts and other military materials. When war time was over, the reverted back to automobile production. They made it through The Great Depression and in 1938, the took over their competitors, Barker, who had entered into receivership.

The Hooper Company continued building bodies for cars for many years. Eventually, as the coach-building business slowed in the post World War II era, they turned their talents to sales and service. In 1970, they became a Rolls-Royce distributor.

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Old Number 2
Coachwork: Vanden Plas
Chassis Num: HM2868

Widely regarded as the most important surviving works Bentley, this Brooklands Doube-Twelve winner and LeMans team car from 1930 is also one of the most original vintage Bentleys in the world. This car with chassis number HM2868, was specifically built for racing. With specially designed bodywork by Vanden Plas the car has a 200 bhp, 6.5-liter straight six engine. As a dress rehearsal for LeMans, the car was entered for the Brooklands Double Twelve in May. This was a 24-hour race divided in two parts with a break at nightfall. Driven by Woolf Barnato and Frank Clements, the Bentley Boys were victorious. After LeMans, the W.O. Bentley team retired from racing. Now, carefully and sympathetically conserved and refreshed, 'Old Number 2' is exactly as it was when last seen at LeMans in 1930.

With the introduction of the Speed Six, the company went one stage further in providing customers with a serious contender for motor sports events. The main difference to the standard model was the fitting of twin carburettors. Usually the Bentley Speed Six was built with wheel bases of 138 inches. There are also a small number of Speed Sixes with a wheelbase of 152 1/2 inches. A change of the front springs and depending on the redesign of the front axle fixing, led to the abandonment of the version with the 138 inch wheelbase.Only the 140 inch variant remaining. For participation in the 24 hour race at Le Mans one chassis was built with a wheelbase of 132 inches

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Drophead Coupe
Coachwork: Mulliner
Chassis Num: LR2776

H.J. Mulliner was responsible for this beautifully proportioned 2-door, 2-light drophead coupe and it is one of the very few Speed Sixes with its original bodywork. The Speed Six was a particular favorite of W.O. Bentley. It was also one of the most successful of the many Bentley models, winning at Le Mans in 1929 and 1930 as well as at Brooklands on numerous occasions and in many other period races. Chassis LR2776 was first owned by a Miss Bingham in London and in recent years has won awards at many events, including the 1992 Louis Vuitton Concours in Paris.

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Fastback Coupe
Coachwork: Gurney Nutting

The first owner of this car was Bentley Chairman Woolf Barnato, and it is one of the most famous and unique vintage Bentleys in the world. For many years it was though to be the Blue Train Bentley that was used in a race between Barnato and the French train that ran between Cannes and London, but it is now accepted that another Barnato-owned Speed Six beat the train. The evocative design of this car is believed to have been sketched out by Barnato himself on the back of a napkin, and it was built by the Gurney Nutting Company. With its fastback, racy lines it really is the grandfather of the modern day GT.

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Tourer
Coachwork: Vanden Plas
Chassis Num: HM2869

Two Speed-Six Bentleys were entered for the Brooklands Double Twelve race in May 1930. Racing for 12 hours over each of the two days the cars finished in fine style, with Old Number 2, driven by Barnato and Clements in first place and this car, Old Number 3, driven by Sammy Davis and Clive Dunfee in second. Six weeks later at LeMans the two cars were joined by a third Speed Six, Old Number 1. Sadly, Old Number 3 crashed early in that race but Old Numbers 1 and 2 took first and second place at finish. This Bentley is one of the most historic racing cars in the world, and it appears with its teammates, restored to its former Brooklands and LeMans configuration.

The Bentley 6.5 Litre was a continueation of the Litre series Walter Owen Bentley had created. The four-cylinder 4.5-liter unit used in the 4½ Litre was used for the 6½ Litre Bentley but the 6½ Litre Bentley had two extra cylinders. The Bentley stright-6 had a cast-iron block and head with an overhead camshaft having four-valves per cylinder. There were two spark-plugs per cylinder. The 100 mm bore and 140 mm stroke resulted in a displacement size of 6597. Horsepower was in the neightborhood of 180 - 200.

The design was based on the Bentley 3Litre but inspired by the Rolls-Royce Phantom I. There were a variety of chassis sizes available that ranged from 132 inches to 152.5 inches.

In 1928 Bentley introduced the Speed Six which would, in time, become the most successful Bentley racer. Woolf Barnato, Tim Birkin, and Glen Kidston drove the Speed Six to victories at the 1929 and 1930 24 Hours of Le Mans.

In total there were 363 examples of the Bentley 6½ L and 182 examples of the Speed Six.

The Bentley Company was created by Walter Owen and Henry Bentley in 1919. Within a few years they had their first 24 Hours of LeMans victory. The company prospered for a number of years before going into receivership in 1931. The company had created a total of 3033 cars and had won victories at LeMans five times.

The litre series engines began in 1919 with the four-cylinder 3-litre unit. For its day, it was very technically advanced, thanks, in part, to the technical abilities of WO Bentley. The engine had dry sump lubrication and an overhead camshaft which operated four valves per cylinder. The use of aluminum pistons was also ahead of its time. In an effort to reduce gasket leaks the entire cylinder block was cast as one piece. The displacement size was increased during the early 1920s culminating to the 6-litre Bentleys. This new model, announced in 1925, had a displacement size of nearly 6.6 liters from the new six-cylinder engine. It drew inspiration from the 3-litre units that had brought many victories to the company. During 1925 and 1926 the Six-Litre Bentley's had mild success on the racing circuit as these seasons were plagued with bad luck for Bentley. In response, Bentley began work on a performance version.

The new special model was ready by 1928 and dubbed the Bentley 6 1/2 Litre Speed Model, also known as the Speed Six. The true potential of the Speed Six was experienced during the 1929 and 1930 LeMans race where the Bentley Speed Six models dominated the race. The drivers and co-drivers who piloted the machines to victory were Woolf Barnato, Tim Birkin, and Glen Kidston.

Success at LeMans was due to many factors including expericne, knowledge, and a durable 200 horsepower engine. The company looked poised to be a strong competitor at LeMans in 1931 but financial difficulties kept them from competition.

The Bentley Company was later bought by Rolls Royce and the proud and historic racing program was discarded.

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Bentley: 1920-1930

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