Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of luxury cars and SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Cricklewood, North London, and became widely known for winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929 and 1930. Bentley has been a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group since 1998 and consolidated under VW's premium brand arm Audi since 2022.
The Bentley Arnage is a full-size luxury car manufactured by Bentley Motors in Crewe, England, from 1998 to 2010. The Arnage and its Rolls-Royce-branded sibling, the Silver Seraph, were introduced in the spring of 1998. They were the first entirely new designs for the two marques since 1980.
The Bentley Continental GT is a grand touring car manufactured and marketed by the British company Bentley Motors since 2003. A two-door coupé or convertible, it was the first new Bentley released after the company's acquisition by Volkswagen AG in 1998, and the first Bentley to employ mass production manufacturing techniques. It was later joined by the Bentley Continental Flying Spur, a four-door saloon car variant.
The Rolls-Royce Phantom is a full-sized luxury saloon car made by Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. Launched in 2003, it was the first Rolls-Royce developed and introduced after BMW purchased the right to use the Rolls-Royce name and logo in 1998. It was the seventh Rolls-Royce design to use the Phantom nameplate.
The Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph is a large luxury automobile produced by Rolls-Royce Motors from 1998 to 2002. First unveiled on 3 March 1998 at the Geneva Motor Show, it replaced the Silver Spirit, which ended production in 1997. Silver Seraph production was discontinued when the licence to use the Rolls-Royce marque was sold to BMW, which began manufacture of an unrelated line of vehicles under a new corporation, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.
The Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow is a full-size luxury car produced by British automaker Rolls-Royce in various forms from 1965 to 1980. It was the first of the marque to use unitary body and chassis construction.
The Bentley Continental R is a luxury coupé manufactured by British automobile manufacturer Bentley Motors from 1991 to 2003. It was the first Bentley to feature a body not shared with a Rolls-Royce model since the 1965 S3 Continental and was the first to use the GM 4L80-E transmission. The Continental R was the fastest, most expensive, and most powerful Bentley automobile of its day. It was also the most expensive production car in the world at its introduction. A convertible derivative, called the Bentley Azure, was launched in 1995.
Bentley Brooklands is the name of two distinct models produced by British automobile manufacturer Bentley Motors. The first Brooklands was a full-size luxury saloon, launched in 1992 to replace the Bentley Mulsanne and in turn succeeded by the Bentley Arnage in 1998.
The Bentley R Type is the second series of post-war Bentley automobiles, replacing the Mark VI. Essentially a larger-boot version of the Mk VI, the R type is regarded by some as a stop-gap before the introduction of the S series cars in 1955. As with its predecessor, a standard body was available as well as coachbuilt versions by firms including H. J. Mulliner & Co., Park Ward, Harold Radford, Freestone and Webb, Carrosserie Worblaufen and others.
Bentley Continental refers to several models of cars produced by Bentley Motors. Originally, it referred to a special chassis for engines more powerful than the usual offering, supplied to a selected number of coachbuilders for the fitting of very light-weight coachwork designed under Rolls-Royce supervision.
The Rolls-Royce Phantom IV is a British automobile produced by Rolls-Royce. Only eighteen were made between 1950 and 1956, sold only to buyers whom Rolls-Royce considered worthy of the distinction: the British royal family and heads of state. Sixteen are known to still exist in museums as well as in public and private collections.
The Rolls-Royce Corniche is a two-door, front-engine, rear wheel drive luxury car produced by Rolls-Royce Motors as a hardtop coupé and as a convertible.
The Bentley Mark V was Rolls-Royce's second Bentley model. Intended for announcement at the Earl's Court Motor Show set down for late October 1939 it had much in common with its predecessor. War was declared on 3 September 1939 and a few days later Bentley announced it had ceased production of civilian items.
The Bentley Azure is a four-seater convertible grand tourer produced by British automobile manufacturer Bentley Motors. The first version debuted in 1995 on the Bentley Continental R platform and was made until 2003. After a three-year break, a completely new version debuted in 2006 and was produced until 2009. It was powered by a significantly updated engine and based on the newer Arnage platform.
Rolls-Royce Motors was a British luxury car manufacturer, created in 1973 during the de-merger of the Rolls-Royce automotive business from the nationalised Rolls-Royce Limited. It produced luxury cars under the Rolls-Royce and Bentley brands. Vickers acquired the company in 1980 and sold it to Volkswagen in 1998. Bentley Motors is the company's direct successor; however, BMW acquired the rights to the Rolls-Royce trademark for use on automobiles and launched a new Rolls-Royce company shortly afterwards.
John Polwhele Blatchley was a London-born car designer known for his work with J Gurney Nutting & Co Limited and Rolls-Royce Limited. He began his career as designer with Gurney Nutting in 1935, moving up to Chief Designer before leaving in 1940 to join Rolls-Royce. There he served as a draughtsman (1940–43), stylist in the car division (1943–55), and chief styling engineer (1955–69).
In the history of Rolls-Royce automobiles, only two distinct series of V8 engines have been produced. The first powered the 1905 "V-8" model and was made in very small numbers. The second was developed in the 1950s and was known internally as the "L Series" of engines. The L Series V8, in highly developed form, continues to power Bentley automobiles into the 21st century.
Bentley Crewe, also named the Pyms Lane site after the street it is located on; is the headquarters and design and manufacturing centre of Bentley Motors Limited on the outskirts of Crewe, Cheshire, England. The site covers an area of 521,111 m2 (5,609,190 sq ft), of which 166,930 m2 (1,796,800 sq ft) is indoors.
The Rolls-Royce–Bentley L-series V8 engine is an engine introduced in 1959. Built in Crewe, it was used on most Rolls-Royce and Bentley automobiles in the four decades after its introduction and was used in the Bentley Mulsanne until 2020.
