The only discernible difference between the Shadow and the T was the grill which was, simpler to manufacturer, lighter, smoother and largely responsible for the Bentley at £ 5375 being £50 cheaper than the Shadow when introduced in 1965.
The T was the first Bentley to feature a monocoque construction. The car was 'adequately' powered by a 6230 cc / 380 cui Rolls Royce V8, power output was never mentioned in connection with Rolls or Bentley at this time, presumably because 'adequate' in connection with a vehicle weighing 2 tons avoided any embarrassing direct power to weight ratio comparisons.
Where the T really scored over the Shadow other than marginally more discrete badging was exclusivity, between 1965 and 1977 16,717 Series 1 Shadows were built against just 1,703 Series 1 T's
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Very interesting! I had no idea these were the twin of the Rolls Royce's Silver Shadow! I think this is a gorgeous color, too. It isn't BRG to my eyes so what color would you call it?
ReplyDeleteI am not sure how far back the twinning of Rolls and Bentley models goes but I believe it goes back to the 50's.
ReplyDeleteBRG turns out to be almost any shade of green you like. But I'd call this particular shade of green early 70's glam rock pop star metallic green, I am sure Bentley might have another name for it, if it was ever on their books in this shade :-)