1922 Bentley 3-Liter Short Chassis Tourer

2,996cc Single Overhead Camshaft Four-Cylinder Engine
Dual Su "Sloper" Carburetors (see text)
82hp
4-Speed Manual Transmission
4-Wheel Mechanical Drum Brakes
4-Wheel Semi-Elliptical Leaf Spring Suspension with Live Axles

*Sporting short chassis with its original bodywork
*Uprated to 'Speed' model specifications
*In the current ownership since 1979
*A lovely tour and event car


THE BENTLEY 3-LITER

"For the man who wants a true sporting type of light-bodied car for use on a Continental tour – where speed limits are not meant to be observed – the 3 Litre Bentley is undoubtedly the car par excellence." S.C.H. "Sammy" Davis, The Autocar, 1920

While later Bentleys grew into large, fast, comfortable, powerful cars it was the original conception of the 3-Liter – what Walter Owen Bentley intended to be a fast, reliable sporting car – that proved to be in the end the most successful. It was the foundation upon which his and Bentleys reputation was built. In nine years production some 1,600 were built. Their survival a century later is tribute both to their rugged construction and to the driving experience they provided.

W.O. Bentley apprenticed at the Doncaster locomotive works of the Great Northern Railway where he demonstrated an innate but carefully schooled appreciation for the fine points of performance. In the process he demonstrated proficiency first as a motorcycle rider and then as an automobile tuner and driver in time trials, hillclimbs and circuit racing.

In due course he became involved in importing and racing Doriot, Flandrin & Parent (D.F.P) light cars from France, eventually buying the importer with his brother Horace Milner Bentley (H.M.), a Chartered Accountant. Although D.F.P offered three models it was the mid-range 12/15hp with a 2-liter four-cylinder engine that aroused WO's interest. With a mechanic named Leroux from France he attended to the 12/15's performance, setting fastest time and a course record at its first competition appearance at the Aston hillclimb in 1912.

Further competition and record-setting achievements followed, raising both the D.F.P.'s and W.O.'s recognition. It also brought him into contact with the premier racing machines of the day like Humber, Straker-Squire and the pre-war GP Peugeots. W.O. was never shy about recognizing an effective feature in a competitive car.

In 1914 war intervened but before its inception W.O. had caught sight of a sample aluminum piston on the desk of D.F.P.'s director M. Doriot. Curious, he arranged for a set to be cast and machined for his D.F.P. Mechanician Leroux fitted and tuned the engine to higher compression and piston speed and it proved both fast and reliable. Now called the 15/40hp in recognition of its substantial power increase it again set records and brought W.O. to the attention of the Royal Naval Air Service which faced reliability problems with its Clerget rotary engine.

W.O. ameliorated the Clerget's problems with careful attention to detail, then designed his own Clerget-based rotaries, BR1 and BR2, that began to replace Clergets in RAF and RNAS Sopwith Camels.

After the war Bentley turned its attention and talents to designing its first car, a 3-liter single overhead camshaft four-cylinder. W.O. appreciated the dual overhead camshaft designs of the pre-war Mercedes and Peugeot engines but chose instead a single overhead camshaft that could be driven by a shaft and bevel gear system. Four valves per cylinder were preferred for better volumetric efficiency and the intake and exhaust valves were disposed on opposite sides of the engine.

Layout was conventional with a ladder frame, live axles on semi-elliptical leaf springs and rear brakes only. Development, hampered by financial difficulties that never quite left Bentley alone, took two years, a consequence of W.O.'s attention to detail and his insistence that it be done right, not expediently or with concessions for cost. It was attention that would pay dividends for Bentley's reputation and racing success for decades to come.

Deliveries began in June 1921, as did competition preparation. Surprisingly, one of the first factory efforts was at the Indianapolis 500 in 1922, then winning the Team Prize at the Isle of Man TT.

Bentley's Le Mans era began in 1923, the round the clock race's first year, with a Bentley single entry that finished fourth overall after setting fastest lap. In 1924 the 3-Liter Bentley won, establishing forever the marque's Le Mans mastery.

THE CAR OFFERED

Chassis number 166 was built and delivered to its first owner in November 1922, Alan B. Ritchie, and Australian living in London and probably the first Australian to take delivery of a Bentley. The car is a short chassis (9 foot 9 ½ inches) and is correctly fitted with engine number 164. Ritchie used the car without a body for a short while until he had the Park Ward Tourer body made.

The engine, as delivered, was the standard low compression type with single Smiths carburetor – commonly referred to as a 'Blue Label' 3 liter. Later ownership converted the car to Speed model specifications with twin SU carburetors, higher compression and appropriate gear ratios.

Records show that the car returned to the factory for a 'light overhaul' and fitment of upgraded shock absorbers in October 1923 prior to shipment to Australia (the original factory 5-year guarantee was re-issued in 1923 and is available). By January 1924, Ritchie had returned to Australia, bringing 166 with him.

The new home for 166 was in Penshurst in Western Victoria. 166 remained in the Ritchie family until 1927.

Little is known about the car during the period from 1928-1945. After the war 166 was in the hands of Laurie Lynch in Melbourne who sold the car to John Cocks of Chewton in Victoria in 1954. Cocks kept the car for about a year before selling it to Stan Burns of Melbourne.

Late in 1955 it was again sold this time to Harvey Hodgson in Sydney who kept the car until late 1971 when Bill Stevens acquired it and bought it to Adelaide. Bill fitted a front wheel braked axle and carried out a full restoration.

In 1979 it was acquired by the present owner who has enjoyed and meticulously maintained it for over four decades, a prime example of a cherished and highly original 3-Liter Bentley with its original engine, gearbox, rear axle and 1971 reskinned Park Ward tourer coachwork with replacement wings, fabled in Bentley history and firmly ensconced in automobile and Bentley history.