Retro Cool: Bentley Dynamo Concept

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed)
Jun 24th 2010 at 8:02AM

Bentley, founded in the UK in 1919, is as British as they come, but it took a designer from Boston to come up with the coolest concept for the marque that we've seen in recent memory. Marc Senger's Bentley Dynamo concept is inspired by the famed 1929 4.5 liter Blower Bentley racecar. An alluring modern take on the original, the Bentley Dynamo features a 4.3 liter supercharged "blown" four-cylinder engine making for massive power. Back in the day the Blower Bentley – a vintage example of which just sold for $1 million at the UK's Historics at Brooklands auction as we recently reported – produced 175 hp and got about 2.3 mpg. With a wheelbase of 110" and killer neo-retro looks, Senger's Dynamo is a fitting legacy to the Blower, which Ian Fleming, who owned one, chose as James Bond's original vehicle (it's featured in three of the 007 novels, Casino Royale, Live and Let Die and Moonraker). Ralph Lauren owns one of the most famous Blower Bentleys still around today, painted with the number 8 like Senger's rendering.

Gallery: Bentley Dynamo Concept