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Model history and curiosity

The Bentley S1, initially simply called the "Bentley S," is one of the milestones in the history of the British brand, born in parallel with its "twin," the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud I.

At the time, Bentley was part of the Rolls-Royce group, and the S1 represented a perfect example of luxury badge engineering: the two cars were mechanically identical, but the Bentley was distinguished by its distinctive, more rounded and dynamic radiator grille and the logo on the hood, maintaining a slightly more driving-oriented feel than the more formal Rolls-Royce.

It was the last mass-produced Bentley to be built on a ladder-frame chassis separate from the body.
The S1 went down in history as the last standard Bentley to feature the legendary Rolls-Royce-derived inline-6 ​​engine. From the S2 onward, the famous V8 engine arrived, a 4.9-liter engine with a cast-iron block and aluminum head, fed by two SU carburetors. A 4-speed automatic transmission, originally from General Motors, was offered as standard, but was produced under license. Manual transmissions became an absolute rarity, disappearing entirely in 1957.

Power steering was introduced as an option in 1956, essential for managing a car that nearly weighed two tons. The rear suspension was electrically adjustable via a dashboard control to stiffen or soften the ride.
The top speed was nearly 166 km/h, with acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in about 13 seconds.

The interior is a British salon, the S1's cabin embodying the stereotype of Old British luxury: the finest burr walnut throughout the dashboard and on the fold-out tables for the rear passengers, huge, armchair-like seats upholstered in the highest quality Connolly leather, and significantly increased legroom and trunk space compared to the previous R-Type.

The S1 did not use a traditional hydraulic or vacuum brake booster: it used a mechanical servomechanism driven by the gearbox, a system initially patented by Hispano-Suiza. Essentially, the faster the car went, the more the driveshaft provided mechanical energy to multiply the pressure on the drum brakes, resulting in incredibly good braking for the time.

The 4.9-liter inline-six was nicknamed "Big Bore" and was the pinnacle of a design born before World War II. Although it was extremely quiet, it had reached the limit of its thermal development: it was not possible to extract further power without compromising its reliability, which is why in 1959 it was replaced by the V8.

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