The 3½ Litre was presented to the public in September 1933, shortly after the death of Henry Royce

Henry Royce

Sir Frederick Henry Royce, 1st Baronet, OBE was a pioneering car manufacturer, who with Charles Stewart Rolls founded the Rolls-Royce company.-Early life:...

, and was the first new Bentley model following Rolls-Royce's acquisition of the Bentley

Bentley

Bentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer of automobiles founded on 18 January 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley known as W.O. Bentley or just "W O". Bentley had been previously known for his range of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later...

 brand in 1931. This era of Bentley models are also known as "Derby Bentleys" because they were built in the Rolls-Royce factory located in Derby, England.

From the outset, the car was intended to compete on quality and grace rather than sporting reputation which had been the cornerstone of the pre-1931 Bentley company.