For many years in the Vintage Bentley world enthusiats have agreed on the exceptional virtues of the 3/4.5 litre conversion.

Take an original 3 Litre Speed Model with the short 9ft 9 wheelbase and either upgrade the engine (more easily engineered on the later 3 Litres) or install an original 4.5 Litre engine (not easy to find).

You end up with a fast sports car with handling that is superior to anything else from the Vintage era.

Some Bugatti and Alfa Romeo owners may disagree, but there is little doubt the Bentley is less fussy, more robust, and considerably cheaper! The 4.5 Litre chassis is the same as the 3 Litre Standard (10 10 inches) anyway, so you have the closest car to a real short chassis 4.5 Litre of which only 11 were made and they are very valuable.

Having done your mechanical conversion you might as well finish the job by fitting a Le Mans style body with blade wings and a big fuel tank to look like the factory team cars, and you have the perfect Vintage Bentley for r...