The hands
The people behind the car
The people whose work shaped the Bentley 3 Litre.
W.O. Bentley
Founder and chief engineer
Defined the 3 Litre's engine architecture and used competition to prove the production chassis.
3 Litre
Bentley's first production chassis
The 3 Litre established the W.O. Bentley formula: a large, slow-turning engine, separate coachbuilt body and endurance results that made the road car credible. Chassis, engine and original coachwork outweigh a later Le Mans-style body.
Market value · road
USD 202,594.15–USD 295,789.18
Typical USD 258,781.51 · 30 sales · +25% vs ’19–’20
USD 107,436.48USD 571,650
Market value · road
USD 202,594.15–USD 295,789.18
Typical USD 258,781.51 · 30 sales · +25% vs ’19–’20
USD 107,436.48USD 571,650
’03’26
Market history · in the terminal
- Engine
- 2'996 cc four (SOHC · four valves per cylinder)
- Power
- 70 to 80 bhp (standard and Speed factory figures)
- Top speed
- 90 mph (145 km/h · Speed Model)
- Transmission
- 4-speed (manual · non-synchromesh)
- Production
- 1'622 (513 Speed Models)
- Le Mans wins
- 1924 · 1927 (overall)
Market & Price
Bentley 3 Litre price & market value
The Bentley 3 Litre reference estimate is USD 202,594–USD 295,789 (Sept 2026). The file contains 50 documented road sales, with individual specifications recorded separately. Actual prices depend on specification, condition and provenance; this range is not an offer or a confirmed sale price.
Records: 50 documented road sales on file · 2003–2026; estimate band USD 202,594.15–USD 295,789.18 · good road cars. recorded sale prices · mixed hammer and premium-inclusive basis.
HCN:3LITRELive model
$258'782-50.2% · 12M
Model curve · anchored to 50 documented sales · benchmarks rebased at window startmodel v1 · seed bentley-3-litre · not investment advice
Model forecast · 16 Jul 2027
12 months from the model baseline
- Lower · P10
- USD 194,998.65-24.6% vs baseline
- Median · P50
- USD 254,673.95-1.6% vs baseline
- Upper · P90
- USD 332,611.64+28.5% vs baseline
Model data: Jul 2026 · 50 documented sale anchors. Modeled history between documented sales.
How to read this forecast
P50 is the model median. The outer shading spans P10–P90; the darker band spans P25–P75. These are model quantiles, not verified probabilities or observed sale prices. The calculation extends the modeled trend and volatility; it does not include new listings, vehicle condition or transaction costs.
The readouts · model figures against the benchmarks50 documented anchors · last sale 4 mo ago
Compound annual growth
| Window | This car* | S&P 500 | Gold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | -50.2% | +18.8% | +21.9% |
| 5Y | +1.0% | +11.4% | +17.6% |
| 10Y | -2.2% | +13.3% | +11.8% |
*Modeled price CAGR · S&P is a price index, no dividends
Deepest drawdown · model window
This car*-83.9%Aug 2018 → Mar 2024 · not recovered
S&P 500-50.8%Oct 2007 → Mar 2009 · recovered Mar 2013
Gold-39.3%Sep 2011 → Dec 2015 · recovered Jul 2020
Forecast ladder · model quantiles
| Horizon | P10 | P50 | P90 |
|---|---|---|---|
| +6M | USD 211,618.54 | USD 256,719.52 | USD 311,432.59 |
| +12M | USD 194,998.65 | USD 254,673.95 | USD 332,611.64 |
| +24M | USD 172,074.37 | USD 250,631.6 | USD 365,052.6 |
Median path with the 10th and 90th percentile · not investment advice
Transaction ledger · documented salesMixed price basis · not estimates
50 of 50 recorded sales · shown in USD · recorded currency in each record
Recent public Speed Model results cluster below the exceptional early-chassis and competition cars.
Price range · road · openConfidence · mediumThree documented USD auction sales anchor the band, but coachwork continuity, specification and chassis history produce a wide spread. The first production Bentley and cars with major period competition provenance sit outside it.
Floor
USD 202,594.15
Typical
USD 258,781.51
Ceiling
USD 295,789.18
Estimate band for good road cars. 30 documented sales since 2019 plotted below.
USD 105,198.22USD 202,594.15USD 258,781.51USD 295,789.18USD 577,200
Hover the spectrum to read a value, or a dot for the sale behind it.
Band and axis shown in USD. Sale positions use indicative fixed-rate conversion to USD; sale readouts retain recorded currencies. USD; representative of documented, usable 3 Litre road cars rather than the first chassis or works-raced examples.
The wider market · Bentley at auction · median per year · modeled between anchors1,032 lots · 2003–2026 · exact yearly anchors · modeled line
Instrument calibration for this file is in progress — the terminal above reads the documented record directly.
Published sold totals are recorded without currency conversion. Each result must be read with its coachwork and numbered-component file.
Overview
A sporting chassis sold to owners who chose the body.
Bentley Motors delivered its first production car in September 1921. The 3 Litre's long-stroke four, twin ignition and overhead camshaft gave the new company a technical identity before it had a competition record.
The model expanded into standard, Speed and short-chassis high-performance specifications. Bentley's current archive gives 1'622 cars, including 513 Speed Models; some older auction catalogues print 1'624, so a two-car discrepancy remains in published sources.
Most chassis left Cricklewood for an outside coachbuilder. Bodies, engines and other numbered assemblies were frequently changed during long working lives, making a Clare Hay report, factory service records and physical-number inspection central to valuation.
- Built
- 1'622
- Engine
- 3.0L inline-four
- Valvetrain
- SOHC · 16 valves
- Factory
- Cricklewood
- First delivery
- September 1921
Reference
Technical specifications
Powertrain
- Engine
- 2'996 cc inline-fourcast-iron monobloc; fixed cylinder head
- Valvetrain
- Single overhead camshaft, 16 valvesbevel-shaft cam drive; four valves per cylinder
- Ignition
- Twin spark plugs and twin magnetos
- Output
- 70 bhp standard · 80 bhp SpeedBentley factory figures; the Green Label was the 100 mph specification
- Transmission
- 4-speed manualnon-synchromesh
Chassis and variants
- Frame
- Pressed-steel ladder chassis
- Speed wheelbase
- 117.5 in2'984.5 mm; factory Heritage Collection specification
- Suspension
- Solid axles and semi-elliptic leaf springs
- Brakes
- Mechanical drumsspecification evolved during the nine-year production run
- Coachwork
- Independent coachbuildersVanden Plas supplied many open sporting bodies
The records
0
cars in Bentley's factory total
0
Speed Models
0valves
four per cylinder
HICON BID
Buying interest, silently.
A HICON Bid is a confidential expression of buying interest on the Bentley 3 Litre file — never public, never shown to other members. It is not a binding purchase, and HICONIUM holds no funds.
Sign in
HICON Bids are a member instrument. Sign in to place one.
The vault
Open a file on yours.
You keep one? The record starts in your garage — identity, papers, photography, and the market evidence this file already carries, bound to your chassis.
The variants
One badge, 3 executions
The register separates the 3 Litre into its documented executions. One reference silhouette per execution — each opens as its own file as the archive fills.
Blue Label01Reference in preparationRed Label Speed02
Reference in preparationGreen Label03
3 executions on file · references drawn to the house standard
The cars
The 3 Litre register
Documented individual cars — chassis, colour, ownership and sale history. Open one for its full provenance. Public records only; members see the complete registry.
03 documented · public records