For the past 18 months, Bentley has been working to expand its Heritage Collection. It now features 42 cars – 34 road-legal models and eight race cars. Twenty-two will live in the automaker’s new Heritage Garage located on its campus in Crewe, England.
The garage is in what used to be the automaker’s “project forum”. It was here that Bentley planned and developed the 2003 Continental GT. The brick building was built in the 1930s, featuring large, airy windows. This is the first time Bentley has been able to maintain its Heritage Collection on its campus.
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“Having now rebuilt the Collection to fully chart our history, we have an ongoing commitment to adding to it with every significant new model we launch,” said Mike Sayer, head of Bentley Heritage Collections.
The garage currently houses Bentley models dating from 1919, but will eventually feature cars built in Crewe from 1946 onwards. Bentley will display the Cricklewood Significant and Derby-era models at the CW I House, which the company plans to redevelop soon. The collection of race cars will form a third and separate display. Bentley will use the Heritage Garage for internal briefing and external presentations.
Those who get a chance to tour the garage will see cars like the EXP2, the second car made by WO Bentley, and the oldest model in the world. It will sit alongside vintage rides like the 1929 Speed Six and 1930 8 Liter. The collection also features newer metals, such as the first Continental GT to roll off the assembly line at Crewe, the Continental GT V8S, and the 2019 Bentayga Hybrid.
Every car in Bentley’s Heritage Collection is in full running condition and in road legal condition. According to Sayer, the garage brings Bentley’s history to “living life,” allowing the automaker to “actively refer to our past while determining the direction of our future.” Factory visitors can now see Bentley’s history in its entirety, and the collection will grow with each new model. The future looks bright for the brand.
