Bentley S1

Vehicle Description

Get away from everyday life, in luxury

A time travel of a very special kind, that’s what this Bentley S1 can offer you. It’s a re-import from the USA, a 1956 vintage. That is to say it comes from an era in which large parts of the German population dreamed of a VW Beetle.

With this dream car, almost 60 years have not gone past without leaving their mark. However it presents itself, the faulty paintwork notwithstanding, with a sympathetic patina. In the burgundy interior, the seats are more of a fauteuil really, flanked by fine woods on the door linings and instrument panel.

A 4-speed automatic mounted to the steering column (on the right hand side) was, at the time, quite a rarity! The big straight six engine runs and the luxury sedan is conditionally fit to drive. Who wants to indulge himself in the journey to another world?

Since the acquisition of Bentley by Rolls Royce, almost a quarter of a century had passed. The company policy was: Except for badge and grille, the vehicles have to be identical. Hence, the Bentley S1, presented in 1955, corresponded to the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud.

Compared to their predecessors, the new models had far bigger dimensions; a length of 5.4 m was a very clear message! Then this massive grille, the almost baroque, curved fenders: Everything about this luxury sedan was designed with the taste of the English nobility in mind. In accordance to this, the traditional design with the separation between chassis and body was ratained, so that different compositions were possible, at least in principle, even if most customers opted for the standard design.

As for the engine, it was adopted from the predecessor, a six-cylinder 4.9 liter engine that accelerated the 2-ton sedan to a respectable 160 km/h, if necessary.

Vehicle Overview