1929 Bentley 4.5 Litre

1929 Bentley 4.5 Litre
1929 Bentley 4.5 Litre Navigation
1929 Bentley 4.5 Litre Model Years

In 1919, W.O. Bentley's company, the Bentley Motors Limited, began from humble beginnings in a mews garage off Baker Street in London. Over the years that followed, it would achieve fame for its fast touring cars, and ability to compete with the best of American and European sports cars. They dominated at LeMans in 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929, and 1930.

1929 Bentley 4.5 Litre photo
Tourer by Vanden Plas
Chassis #: DS3575
Engine #: DS3572
View info and history
At the 1919 Olympia Motor Exhibition, W.O. Bentley debuted the new 3-liter car. This model, with its leather-strapped bonnet, British Racing Green livery, and classical radiator design, would become legendary in motor racing history. Bentley finished second, fourth, and fifth in the 1922 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy earning the company the Team Prize. This monumental accomplishment spawned the TT Replica, later to become known as the Speed Model.

By the mid-1920s, the competition was catching up to the performance of the 3-Liter. Additionally, the coachwork on many road-going vehicles had become large, luxurious, and heavy. Bentley offered the 6½-litre 'Silent Six', but for many of the customers, it was too expensive. This led to the introduction of the '4½', which effectively used the transmission, brakes, and chassis of the 3-liter, with the engine that was in essence two-thirds of the six-cylinder 6½-litre unit.

The new 4½-Litre model had a four-cylinder motor that retained the six's 100mm broke and 140mm stroke and Bentley's traditional four-vales-per-cylinder fixed-head arrangement. The front-end vertical camshaft drive of the 3-Liter was adopted. It is believed that the prototype engine was installed into the 3-Liter chassis of the 1927 LeMans practice car. That same engine was later installed in the first production 4½-Litre chassis which raced at that year's Grand Prix d'Endurance at the Sarthe circuit. The team nicknamed the car 'Old Mother Gun' and driving duties were entrusted to Frank Clement and Leslie Callingham, who set the fastest race lap of 73.41 mph. Sadly, their day ended prematurely due to the infamous 'White House Crash' multiple pile-ups.

1929 Bentley 4.5 Litre photo
Tourer by Vanden Plas
Chassis #: NX3451
Engine #: NX3455 - XF3507
View info and history
Auction entries : 2
The Bentley 4½-Litre, offered to the public in late-1927, was produced for four years with 662 (other sources state 665) examples produced. All but eleven examples were built on the 3-Litre's 'Long Standard', 130-inch wheelbase chassis.

Bentley offered a Plethora of mechanical and electrical equipment to satisfy the needs and wishes of the buyers. All Bentley's were bodied by independent coachbuilders. The operational chassis consisted of a radiator, firewall, and hood panels. They were road-tested on public highways prior to being sent for their coachwork. Approximately 120 coachbuilders, most of whom were British, supplied bodies for the Bentleys. Vanden Plas provided 669 bodies from 1922 through 1931. Vanden Plas and Bentley's relationship began in 1922 and by 1924, they bodied 84 Bentleys. Vanden Plas leased a portion of the premises to Bentley in 1925 as a service department.

Bentley's were produced between 1919 and 1931 at Cricklewood. The 'Derby Bentleys' were produced by Rolls-Royce after their purchase of the company out of receivership


by Daniel Vaughan | May 2019

Related Reading : Bentley 4½ Litre History

The Bentley 4 12 liter came into existence to fill a void left by the 3-liter and the 6.5-liter variants. The 3-liter suffered from underperformance while the 6.5-liter was unsafe for the roads. The 6.5-liter was powerful, and with poor road-conditions often caused tires to fail quickly. The solution was the Bentley 4.5-liter a vehicle that had enough power to carry the vehicle down the road at....
Continue Reading >>

1929 Bentley 4.5 Litre Vehicle Profiles

Recent Vehicle Additions

Performance and Specification Comparison

4½ Litre

Specification Comparison by Year

Year
Production
Wheelbase
Engine
Prices
130.00 in.
4 cyl., 274.61 CID., 110.00hp
733
130.00 in.
4 cyl., 274.61 CID., 110.00hp
4 cyl., 274.61 CID., 182.00hp
130.00 in.
4 cyl., 274.61 CID., 110.00hp
117.50 in., 130.00 in.
4 cyl., 274.61 CID., 182.00hp

Related Automotive News

GENERATIONS OF SPEED: BENTLEY CONTINENTAL GT3 AND THE BIRKIN ‘BLOWER'

GENERATIONS OF SPEED: BENTLEY CONTINENTAL GT3 AND THE BIRKIN ‘BLOWER'

Racers past and present come together to mark extraordinary year of motorsport 2015 saw Continental GT3 win two major international GT championship titles This year marks the 85th anniversary of the famous 1930 Le Mans win Cars met at the British...
ICONIC BLOWER BENTLEYS PRIMED FOR MILLE MIGLIA CHALLENGE

ICONIC BLOWER BENTLEYS PRIMED FOR MILLE MIGLIA CHALLENGE

Famous, supercharged Bentleys set for 1,000 mile Italian epic Bentley Boy Tim Birkins 1930 Le Mans racer leads charge Original Bentley Motors demonstrator completes team (Crewe, 14 May 2013) Bentley Motors will compete in this years Mille Mi...
Legendary Bentley Sets £4.5 Million Auction Record

Legendary Bentley Sets £4.5 Million Auction Record

Tim Birkins 4 ½ Litre Supercharged Blower Bentley single seater sets new world best for a Bentley at Bonhams Goodwood auction Beautiful Brooklands racing machine underlines enduring appeal of the Bentley Boy racing spirit (Crewe and Goo...
Bentley's Iconic 1929 Team Blower To Be Reborn With 12-Strong Continuation Series

Bentley's Iconic 1929 Team Blower To Be Reborn With 12-Strong Continuation Series

Bentleys most revered heritage car to be recreated, in world first continuation of a pre-war race car Specialist Mulliner team to reverse engineer Sir Tim Birkins famous 4½-litre Team Blower to create new cars 12 new Blowers, each identical to t...

Sir Henry Ralph Stanley Birkin: No Christmas Tiger

Remembered as one of the most influential of the famous Bentley Boys, Henry Tim Birkin was anything but a mere member of Britains upper crust. Head-strong, courageous and unyielding, Birkin would often be challenged to mix it up with the aces...
BENTLEY AT THE PALACE OF HOLYROODHOUSE CONCOURS OF ELEGANCE

BENTLEY AT THE PALACE OF HOLYROODHOUSE CONCOURS OF ELEGANCE

Historical Bentleys star at prestigious Edinburgh event 1952 R-Type Continental, Blue Train and 8 Litre among line up Bentley Sunday highlights best of British brands historic range (Crewe, 31 August) Scotlands historical seat of pow...
CLASSIC BENTLEYS READY FOR ACTION-PACKED SUMMER SEASON

CLASSIC BENTLEYS READY FOR ACTION-PACKED SUMMER SEASON

Famous heritage models hit international classic show circuit 95 years of history to tour from Goodwood to Pebble Beach 85th anniversary of Blue Train race and 1930 Le Mans win (Crewe, 21 May 2015) Legendary cars from Bentleys past are...
ICONIC BLOWER BENTLEYS PRIMED FOR MILLE MIGLIA CHALLENGE

ICONIC BLOWER BENTLEYS PRIMED FOR MILLE MIGLIA CHALLENGE

Famous, supercharged Bentleys set for 1,000 mile Italian epic Bentley Boy Tim Birkins 1930 Le Mans racer leads charge Original Bentley Motors demonstrator completes team (Crewe, 14 May 2013) Bentley Motors will compete in this years Mille Mi...

Vehicle information, history, and specifications from concept to production.