In 1959 Bentley upgraded their flagship chassis to the 6¾-liter V8 including the S2 Continental which was intended as a driver’s car for more sporting coachwork.
For the most part the Continental line was limited to coupes and cabriolets with one exception being the four-door Flying Spur. These included the James Young Sports Saloon, H.J. Mulliner Coupé, H.J. Mulliner Flying Spur and Park Ward Drophead Coupé.
The open Drophead Coupé by Park Ward was new to the Bentley line. It was designed by Vilhelm Koren of Norway for Park Ward and uniquely featured a straight fender line. 125 of the 388 S2 Continentals were built with this Drophead Coupé design.
| type | Series Production Car |
| production years | 1959 – 1962 |
| production | 388 |
| engine | V8 |
| position | Front, Longitudinal |
| aspiration | Natural |
| block material | Aluminum Alloy |
| fuel feed | 2 Carburetors |
| displacement | 6230 cc / 380.18 in³ |
| bore | 104.14 mm / 4.1 in |
| stroke | 91.44 mm / 3.6 in |
| compression | 8.0:1 |
| body / frame | Body over Steel Ladder-Type Chassis |
| front tires | 8.00 x 15 |
| rear tires | 8.00 x 15 |
| front brakes | Drums |
| rear brakes | Drums |
| f suspension | Independant w/Coil Springs |
| r suspension | Live Axle w/Semi-Elliptic Leaf Springs |
| wheelbase | 3124 mm / 123 in |
| transmission | 4-Speed Automatic |
| BODYWORK | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| BODY TYPE | 4/5 seater sedan/saloon | ||
| NUMBER OF DOORS | 2 | ||
| DESIGNER | |||
| DIMENSIONS & WEIGHTS | |||
| WHEELBASE | 3124mm | 123 inches | |
| TRACK/TREAD (FRONT) | 1524 mm | 60 inches | |
| TRACK/TREAD (REAR) | 1524 mm | 60 inches | |
| LENGTH | 5378mm | 211.7 inches | |
| WIDTH | 1854 mm | 73 inches | |
| HEIGHT | 1549 mm | 61 inches | |
| GROUND CLEARANCE | 178 mm | 7 inches | |
| LENGTH:WHEELBASE RATIO | 1.72 | ||
| KERB WEIGHT | 1918 kg | 4228 lb | |
| WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION | |||
| FUEL TANK CAPACITY | 81.8 litres | 18 [21.6] UK [US] gal. | |
| AERODYNAMICS | |||
| DRAG COEFFICIENT | |||
| FRONTAL AREA | |||
| CDA | |||
| POWERTRAIN | |||
| ENGINE TYPE | naturally aspirated petrol | ||
| ENGINE MANUFACTURER | Rolls-Royce | ||
| ENGINE CODE | |||
| CYLINDERS | V 8 | ||
| CAPACITY | 6.2 litre 6223 cc (379.751 cu in) | ||
| BORE × STROKE | 104.1 × 91.4 mm 4.1 × 3.6 in | ||
| BORE/STROKE RATIO | 1.14 | ||
| VALVE GEAR | overhead valve (OHV) 2 valves per cylinder 16 valves in total | ||
| MAXIMUM POWER OUTPUT | |||
| MAXIMUM TORQUE | |||
| ENGINE CONSTRUCTION | |||
| SUMP | wet sumped | ||
| COMPRESSION RATIO | 8:1 | ||
| FUEL SYSTEM | 2 SU carbs | ||
| BMEP (BRAKE MEAN EFFECTIVE PRESSURE) | |||
| MAXIMUM RPM | |||
| CRANKSHAFT BEARINGS | |||
| ENGINE COOLANT | Water | ||
| UNITARY CAPACITY | 777.88 cc | ||
| ASPIRATION | Normal | ||
| COMPRESSOR | N/A | ||
| INTERCOOLER | None | ||
| CATALYTIC CONVERTER | N | ||
| PERFORMANCE | |||
| ACCELERATION 0-80KM/H (50MPH) | 8.9 s | ||
| ACCELERATION 0-60MPH | |||
| ACCELERATION 0-100KM/H | |||
| ACCELERATION 0-160KM/H (100MPH) | |||
| STANDING QUARTER-MILE | 18.6 s | ||
| STANDING KILOMETRE | |||
| MAXIMUM SPEED | 180 km/h (112 mph) | ||
| POWER-TO-WEIGHT RATIO | |||
| WEIGHT-TO-POWER RATIO | |||
| FUEL CONSUMPTION | |||
| FUEL CONSUMPTION | |||
| UNIVERSAL FUEL CONSUMPTION (CALCULATED FROM THE ABOVE) | |||
| LITRES/100KM | |||
| KM/LITRE | |||
| UK MPG | |||
| US MPG | |||
| CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS | |||
| CARFOLIO CALCULATED CO2? | |||
| VED BAND (UK) | |||
| CO2 EFFIZIENZ (DE) | |||
| CHASSIS | |||
| ENGINE POSITION | front | ||
| ENGINE LAYOUT | longitudinal | ||
| DRIVE WHEELS | rear wheel drive | ||
| TORQUE SPLIT | N/A | ||
| STEERING | |||
| TURNS LOCK-TO-LOCK | 4.500 | ||
| TURNING CIRCLE | 12.70 m | ||
| FRONT SUSPENSION | I.CS. | ||
| REAR SUSPENSION | LA.SE. | ||
| WHEEL SIZE FRONT | |||
| WHEEL SIZE REAR | |||
| TYRES FRONT | 8.00-15 | ||
| TYRES REAR | 8.00-15 | ||
| BRAKES F/R | Dr/Dr-S | ||
| FRONT BRAKE DIAMETER | 286 mm | ||
| REAR BRAKE DIAMETER | 286 mm | ||
| BRAKED AREA | 2735 cm2 | ||
| GEARBOX | 4 speed automatic | ||
