The Bentley S1 Continental was a high-performance, coachbuilt version of the S1, introduced six months after the standard saloon in 1955. It was sold as a chassis only, with lighter fixed-head and drophead coupé bodies supplied to special order for a premium of about 50 per cent.
Bentley S1 Continental at a glance
| Maker | Bentley Motors, Crewe |
|---|---|
| Production | 1955–1959 |
| Based on | Bentley S1 |
| Engine | 4,887 cc straight-six |
| Bore and stroke | 95.25 mm × 114.3 mm |
| Compression | 6.6:1 |
| Carburation | twin SU |
| Transmission | four-speed automatic |
| Bodies | fixed-head and drophead coupés to special order |
| Coachbuilders | H. J. Mulliner, Park Ward, James Young, Freestone & Webb |
| Premium | about 50 per cent over the standard saloon |
| Built | 431 |
This page covers the Continental version of the S1 and is based on English Wikipedia only, so the facts were not cross-checked against a second source.
History of the Bentley S1 Continental
The S1 saloon was announced at the end of April 1955, and at the same time Bentley noted that the existing Continental model would continue. Six months later the new S Continental chassis was introduced, intended for lighter fixed-head and drophead coupé bodies supplied to special order by H. J. Mulliner & Co., Park Ward, James Young and Freestone & Webb, at a premium of about 50 per cent over the standard car. A pre-production two-seater fixed-head coupé on the new chassis was designed and built for the Bentley factory by Pininfarina.
The S1 behind it
The S1 was derived from the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud, the complete redesign of the Rolls-Royce standard production car after the Second World War, and each was its maker’s last standard production car with an independent chassis. It was announced at the end of April 1955 as a more generously sized five- or six-seater saloon with a pressed-steel stressed-skin body, aluminium doors, bonnet and boot lid, a wheelbase three inches longer than the R Type, a lower build with an enlarged boot, softer suspension with electrically operated rear dampers and lighter steering. Engine capacity rose to 4,887 cc, the same size as used in the Bentley Continental.
The S1 and the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud I differed only in radiator grille shape and badging. Both used the 4,887 cc straight-six with a 95.25 mm bore, a 114.3 mm stroke and a 6.6:1 compression ratio, fed by twin SU carburettors, with a four-speed automatic transmission as standard. Two wheelbases were produced, 3,100 mm and from 1957 3,200 mm. A standard-wheelbase car tested by The Motor in 1957 reached 103 mph and 0–60 mph in 13.1 seconds, and with optional power steering it cost £6,305 including taxes.
How many were made
Bentley built 3,072 standard S1 cars, 145 of them with coachbuilt bodies, and 35 long-wheelbase cars, 12 of them coachbuilt. The S1 Continental accounted for 431 chassis. These were the last cars powered by descendants of the engine used in the Rolls-Royce Twenty of 1922–1929; from late 1959 the S-series received the Rolls-Royce–Bentley L Series V8 and became the S2.
Design and features
- Lighter bodies: the Continental chassis was intended for lightweight fixed-head and drophead coupés.
- Coachbuilt choice: four leading coachbuilders offered their own interpretations.
- Six-cylinder finale: the last Bentleys with descendants of the Rolls-Royce Twenty engine.
- Pininfarina prototype: a two-seater fixed-head coupé was built for the factory by Pininfarina.
Bentley S1 Continental versions
- Fixed-head coupé: the closed Continental, most often by H. J. Mulliner.
- Drophead coupé: the open version, also on special order.
- Pininfarina two-seater: the pre-production fixed-head coupé built for Bentley.
- S1 saloon: the standard steel four-door on which the Continental was based.
The S1 Continental was followed by the S2 Continental, and its saloon parent is described on the R Type page. More cars are in the Bentley collection.
Video: 1956 Bentley S1 Continental Coupe
Video by AutoGen.pl on YouTube.
Sources
- Bentley S1, English Wikipedia: S1 Continental, saloon, engine, production
