Meccano Motor Chassis

This CAD model is my modified version of a Meccano Motor Chassis (Super Model No. 1a) from 1934. It’s based on the chassis for a 1933 Bentley 3-1/2 litre car. Advertised as “the silent sports car”, it had a six-cylinder, 110 bhp engine and a top speed of 90 mph (145 km/h).

It was developed by Bentley under the ownership of Rolls-Royce, combining sporty performance with grandeur and reliability. Bentley sold the chassis to coachbuilders, such as Vanden Plas and Park Ward, to add their own custom luxury bodies.

The model includes an electric motor for driving the rear wheels. It also includes a 4-speed gearbox with reverse, gear selector, single-plate clutch with foot pedal, 4-wheel cable-operated brakes with foot pedal and hand brake, Ackermann steering for the front wheels, and differential for the rear wheels, all of which are fully functional on the real model. The actual model is about 25 inches (64 cm) long.

The car body is based on a 1935 Park Ward Sports Saloon. I modeled it based on photographs and other information from the web. It’s designed to fit over the chassis as a removable assembly, supported from the chassis frame.