Bentley · 1931–present
Bentley 4 Litre
The Bentley 4 Litre was a motor car built on rolling chassis made by Bentley Motors Limited in 1931. The 4-litre chassis was conceived and built in a failed attempt to restore Bentley to a good financial state. Announced 15 May 1931, it used a modified 4-litre Ricardo IOE engine in a shortened 8 Litre chassis at two-thirds of the price of the 8 Litre in an attempt to compete with the Rolls-Royce 20/25. Instead, Bentley went into receivership shortly afterward, from which it was purchased by Rolls-Royce Limited. The conventional straight-6 engine used an 85 mm (3.3 in) bore and a 115 mm (4.5 in) stroke for a total displacement of 3.9 L (3,900 cc; 240 cu in) and a power output of 120 bhp (89 kW) at 4,000 rpm. The engine power was not suitable for the heavy chassis.
Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Predecessor: Bentley 3.5 Litre · Successor: Bentley 6½ Litre
All Bentley 4 Litre data: UK builds, safety, recalls, model years →
Specifications
- name
- Bentley 4 Litre
- Manufacturer
- Bentley Motors Limited
- Production
- 1931, 50 produced
- Assembly
- United Kingdom: Cricklewood
- Class
- Luxury car
- Body style
- As arranged with coachbuilder by customer
- Layout
- Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive
- Engine
- 3.9 L Ricardo IOE I6
- Wheelbase
- 134 in, 140 in
- Predecessor
- Bentley Speed Six
- Successor
- Bentley 3.5 Litre
- Designer
- Walter Owen Bentley, Harry Ricardo
- sp
- uk
Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Measured facts from Wikidata (CC0). Check the linked sources for citations.
More photos
Sources
- Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2342774CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bentley_4_LitreCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1307175796 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1931_Bentley_4_Litre.jpgCC BY 2.0 · Photo: Michael Gaylard · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.