Coachwork on Vintage Bentleys

All car enthusiasts know, or think they know, what a vintage Bentley should look like. It should have a four-seater tourer body, and should be painted British Racing Green. But Bentleys weren't always like that. When these cars were new, other types of body by many different coachbuilders - saloons, limousines, fixed-head coupes, landaulets, cabriolets, drophead coupes, sedancas de ville - outnumbered the tourers and sports models. Sadly, these were the bodies which were the first to be scrapped, even though their chassis were often saved. This book uses over 200 contemporary black-and-white illustrations and some 50 specially-shot color photographs to tell the story of Bentley coachwork during the 1920s, and up to 1931 when the company went into receivership. Each of the three classes of coachwork - saloons and limousines, drophead coupes, and tourers - is traced as it evolved through that exciting decade.

All car enthusiasts know, or think they know, what a vintage Bentley should look like. It should have a four-seater tourer body, and should be painted British Racing Green. But Bentleys weren't always like that. When these cars were new, other types of body by many different coachbuilders - saloons, limousines, fixed-head coupes, landaulets, cabriolets, drophead coupes, sedancas de ville - outnumbered the tourers and sports models. Sadly, these were the bodies which were the first to be scrapped, even though their chassis were often saved. This book uses over 200 contemporary black-and-white illustrations and some 50 specially-shot color photographs to tell the story of Bentley coachwork during the 1920s, and up to 1931 when the company went into receivership. Each of the three classes of coachwork - saloons and limousines, drophead coupes, and tourers - is traced as it evolved through that exciting decade.

Nick Walker studied engineering at Cambridge, but then pursued a career in business management and marketing. He is Honorary Librarian of the Vintage Sports-Car Club, Honorary Archivist of SAE-UK (formerly IBCAM), and a member of the Society of Automotive Historians. His special allegiance is to the Alvis marque, and he has owned examples bodied by both Vanden Plas and Cross & Ellis as well as serving as Chairman of the Alvis Owner Club. Now retired, he has in recent years written a number of books and articles on automotive history.