WELCOME BACK: The Legendary Speed Six
With the release of their new and unique Continuation Series of 12 cars, Bentley Mulliner has revived the legendary Speed Six. These vehicles are mechanically and aesthetically faithful recreations of the Bentley racers that won Le Mans in 1929 and 1930. Bentley Mulliner’s new Speed Sixes are the second pre-war continuation project in the world after the Blower, and they were made to honour the achievements of the original cars while continuing to develop and conserve Mulliner’s historical talents.
The Speed Six was Bentley’s most successful racing car of its time and is widely considered one of the most significant automobiles of all time for its role in establishing the Grand Tourer as a legitimate form of transportation; that is, a fast car that was also comfortable, luxurious, and capable of covering long distances with ease. Since then, every Bentley has carried on the family tradition.
The Mulliner specialists who conceived the Blower Continuation Series, the world’s first pre-war continuation project, will also be responsible for designing, developing, and manufacturing the 12-car series. Based on the company’s own 1929 Team Car #2—the most famous and valuable Bentley in the world, which raced alongside the Speed Six in 1930—this lauded run of 12 new 412-litre Blower’ Bentleys sold out immediately after its release. All 12 of the new Speed Six continuations have already been reserved by fortunate clients from all over the world.
Adrian Hallmark, Chairman and Chief Executive of Bentley, announced the Speed Six Continuation Series at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
“After incredible levels of skill were acquired by the Mulliner team through the development of the Blower Continuation Series, and with the success of the cars with their customers, a chance to honour the Speed Six is a fantastic next step. It’s vital that we protect, preserve, and develop not just this important part of our heritage, but also the knowledge we’ve gained through working with these classic Bentleys. The Speed Six is one of the most important Bentleys in our 103 year history, and the 12 cars of the Continuation Series will embody the same values as W.O. Bentley’s originals, crafted by hand with the same meticulous attention both to engineering quality and to fanatical attention to detail. The lucky owners will be able to race their cars around the world, and truly relive the exploits of the original Bentley Boys.”
The Mulliner team will once again have assistance from a fantastic group of craftspeople from various automotive heritage specialists across the UK; these specialists will provide reproduction parts that are not only visually identical to the originals, but are also crafted using the same methods that were common in the 1920s. This unwavering commitment to 100% veracity is crucial to the achievement of this ambitious goal.
The Speed Six, a high-performance variant of the 6.5 Litre, went on to become the most successful racing Bentley, with drivers Woolf Barnato, Sir Henry “Tim” Birkin, and Glen Kidston claiming victory at Le Mans in 1929 and 1930.
The Speed Six was an enhanced model of the original 6.5-litre Bentley from 1926. W.O. Bentley disagreed with Tim Birkin’s belief that supercharging is the greatest approach to enhancing power and instead advocated for increasing capacity. As a result, he designed a new, larger engine to replace the older, smaller one. His new straight six engine had a capacity of about 6.6 litres. The 6.12 litre produced 147 bhp at 3500 rpm in its base configuration, which included a single Smiths five-jet carburetor and dual magnetos. The Cricklewood, north London, plant where 362 were produced used chassis of varying lengths to accommodate the various body styles ordered by customers.
In 1928, a sportier variant of the 6.5 Litre, the Speed Six chassis, was released. The engine was upgraded to produce 180 horsepower by installing dual SU carburetors, increasing the compression ratio, and installing a high-performance camshaft. Customers could choose from three different wheelbase lengths for their Speed Six chassis. Only 182 Speed Six automobiles were produced between 1928 and 1930.
The Speed Six’s racing version had an 11-foot wheelbase and 200 horsepower. The Speed Six’s two victories at Le Mans in 1929 and 1930 solidified its place in Bentley history, with the 1929 triumph establishing a new standard for dominance at the race. From the first lap to the finish line, a Speed Six driven by Woolf Barnato and Sir Henry “Tim” Birkin took the lead, then a group of three additional Bentleys. Birkin broke two records: a lap record of 7:21, shaving 46 seconds off the previous mark and needing an average speed of 83 mph; and a distance record of 2,844 km. It took over 30 years for another manufacturer to perform with such dominance at Le Mans.
In order to produce 12 new Speed Sixes that are faithful recreations of the original 1929 and 1930 racecars, the Mulliner team has built a comprehensive 3D CAD model of the car using the original blueprints and careful analysis of original cars. In this procedure, we used two vehicles as examples.
Bentley entered three Speed Sixes into the 1930 Le Mans race, with “Old Number 3” being the third of the three. It finished the race, and the ordeal without a scratch, and has been kept in pristine condition ever since. Old Number 3 has been an invaluable resource for the development of the new vehicles, as it is still legally on the road and often raced by its owner.
Bentley also has its own Speed Six (GU409), a 1929 road car with a four-seat Vanden Plas body like the original racers and refurbished to the same specification, which is on display alongside Old Number 3 as part of Bentley’s growing Heritage Collection. The 12 new engines will have a baseline to meet or exceed in GU409’s performance and handling data, which includes a complete power and torque curve.
The first all-new Speed Six in 92 years will serve as the project’s engineering test mule and development vehicle. Bentley has decided to keep hold of Speed Six Car Zero, making it the ancestor of future Bentley customers, much like Blower Car Zero is.