Bentley 4 Litre Classic Cars for Sale

The Bentley 4 litre was the very last car designed and built be W.O. Bentley himself. Launched on the market in 1931, it was an attempt to turn a heavy-weight luxury vehicle (Bentley Eight) into a less powerful, and more affordable, everyday car.

The Bentley 4 litre: durability

There were several versions of the Bentley 4 litre, both closed and open top, and some have survived to this day, testifying to the first-class workmanship, durability and quality materials used in the construction of the Bentley 4 litre. There is a tendency to restore and discreetly 'modernise' vintage cars to keep them running smoothly, sometimes to the point where there is little left of the original. In the case of the Bentley 4 litre, although construction dates back to 1931, most Bentley 4 litre cars that are still around are completely original, even to the paintwork. On the Bentley 4 litre the classic lines and the sporty-elegant Bentley look have endured well.

1931: the troubled year that produced the Bentley 4 litre

W.O. Bentley founded Bentley Motors Ltd in 1919 and the company grew rapidly in prestige and ambition. The cars got bigger, more powerful and more sophisticated, reaching a high point with the massive, speedy, high-performing Bentley Eight, of which W.O. Bentley was justly proud. His design was perfect, his technology up-to-the-minute, his timing dismal. The launch of this heavy, petrol-thirsty, expensive car just as the depression was biting globally, was his undoing. In an attempt to redress the situation, his technicians put together a lighter, more economical version which used a smaller engine while keeping the Eight chassis; the result was the Bentley 4 litre. It was a stop-gap measure that only partially saved the day. In the same year Bentley was bought out by Rolls-Royce; the Bentley 4 litre was the very last W.O. Bentley car produced. This curious, unsung vehicle, the first crossover, almost ignored by history, is now a sought-after item. Only 50 Bentley 4 litre cars were ever made; some are still around. Last year a Bentley 4 litre was up for auction at Sotheby's for $500,000.

Some Bentley 4 litre models

The 1931 Bentley 4 litre, 2-door, 4-seater Tourer is a nifty, sporty, convertible Tourer with bodywork by Vanden Plas. A more formal Bentley 4 litre was the Light Saloon car of 1932, an elegant closed vehicle with a typical Rolls-Royce-style silhouette; it boasts bodywork by the historic coach-makers Thrupp and Mayberly. Another surviving Bentley 4 litre is the H.J. Mulliner 4-door Saloon: comfort and style, with coachwork by the famous Mulliner coach-building company who still provide the stylish bodywork on today's Bentleys.