Bentley Motors Limited is an English manufacturer of luxury automobiles and Grand Tourers.
Bentley Motors was founded in England on January 18, 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley, known as
W.O. Bentley or just "W.O." (1888-1971). He was previously known for his successful range
of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later
versions of the Sopwith Camel. Since 1998 the company has been owned by the Volkswagen Group.
A group of wealthy British automobile aficionados known as the "Bentley Boys" (Woolf Barnato,
Sir Henry Birkin, steeplechaser George Duller, aviator Glen Kidston, automotive journalist
S. C. H. "Sammy" Davis, and Dr. Dudley Benjafield among them) kept the car's reputation for
high performance alive. At one point, on a bet, Barnato raced Le Train Bleu from Cannes to
Calais, then by ferry to Dover and finally London, travelling on public highways with normal
traffic, and won ; the special-bodied 6½ Litre car became known as the Blue Train Bentley.
Thanks to the dedication of this group to serious racing, the company, located at Cricklewood,
north London, was noted for its four consecutive victories at the 24 hours of Le Mans from
1927 to 1930. Their greatest competitor at the time, Bugatti, whose lightweight, elegant,
but fragile creations contrasted with the Bentley's rugged reliability and durability,
referred to them as "the world's fastest lorries"...