Bentley Mulsanne 1987 News

The car valued at just over $1 million Australian dollars was unveiled to mark at the gala opening of one of the world's largest Bentley dealerships in Beijing. Designed by the craftsmen and women of Bentley's Mulliner division, the creators of the State Limousine presented to Queen Elizabeth II in 2002, just 60 examples of the Mulsanne Diamond Jubilee Edition have been created with each car representing a year of Her Majesty's reign. Most of these cars are expected to find home in China. These very special Bentleys are distinguished by a range of exquisite, handcrafted features paying tribute to the Jubilee. These include bespoke embroidery to all four headrests using gold stitching, veneered picnic tables in the rear cabin decorated with a gold overlay depicting a royal carriage used for great occasions of state as well as luxurious, hide cushions featuring the same motif. Two beautiful, highly-polished stainless steel treadplate plaques featuring the famous `Bentley Mulliner, England' script and `Diamond Jubilee Edition' have also been commissioned for these Mulsanne models.  

The iconic British brand’s new flagship arrives late next year with more than 100 exterior colour options, 24 recommended two-tone combinations and a host of exterior chrome trims. Bentley product manager Hans Holzgartner said that inside there was even more choice with 24 leather trim colours, five coloured leather pipings, nine wood veneers, even 23 seat belt colours plus a range of optional extras such as cross or contrast stitching and extra Bentley ‘wing’ badges.  “Someone actually did the calculations and came up with a figure of more than a trillion combinations,” he said. However, there is only one engine and one transmission.  The Mulsanne, named after a 1980s model and the notorious high-speed straight at Le Mans, will be powered by a lightweight aluminium 6.75-litre V8 with multi-displacement so it can cruise on just four cylinders.  “Why a V8, we have been asked,” Holzgartner says.  “We didn’t need the car to be any faster but we did want it to be more fun to drive and accelerate harder so we went for more torque for more strength at slow speed.’’ He says the engine is the ‘strongest production V8’ on the market with 1020Nm of torque from just 1600rpm.  The V8 is married to an eight-speed auto/manual transmission that can short shift and skip gears changing up or down to achieve a smooth drive, performance and efficiency.  Bentley claims the engine and transmission combine to reduce CO2 emissions and fuel consumption by more than 15 per cent. Asia Pacific marketing manager James Barclay said the Mulsanne would arrive in Australia in the last quarter of next year and cost ‘more than the current top of the fleet’ which means more than the $744,132 Bentley Azure two-door convertible.  The new Mulsanne is 150mm longer than the Arnage with all of that extra length in the wheelbase to provide more interior space. Despite the 23kg lighter engine, 10kg lighter gearbox and use of aluminium in all panels except the steel roof and polymer boot, Holzgartner says the vehicle would weigh much the same as the Arnage because of the extra interior features.  “Even the carpet is thicker to provide a feeling of quality,” he says. Bentley Mulsanne Price: about $750,000On sale: late 2010Engine: twin-turbocharged, 6750cc, alloy V8 with variable displacementPower: 377kWTorque: 1020NmTransmission: ZF 8-speed automatic, rear-wheel-drive DIMENSIONS (mm): 5562 (l), 1926 (w), 1526 (h), 3266 (wheelbase) Rivals: Rolls-Royce Phantom 6.8L ($107,500)BMW 760Li 6.0L ($386,000)Mercedes-Benz 6.3L 63 AMG ($371,400) and 6.0L 65 AMG ($477,400).

...and buyers are already scrambling to get their orders in for what will be one of the automotive world's most super-exclusive, super-expensive status symbols. The Mulsanne, Bentley's peak luxury sedan, was unveiled this week at the Pebble Beach Concours D'Elegance and it is unlikely there will be much change out of three-quarters of a million dollars when it officially goes on sale in Australia next year. "I couldn't possibly comment on price at this stage but there has been huge interest in this car ever since it became known that the Arnage would be replaced," Bentley Motors' regional manager Ed Stiebig says. "The Mulsanne is a very distinctive, very bold design harking back to the history of Bentley yet on a completely modern platform and packed with the latest in technology." The flagship grand tourer is inspired by what many consider to be the crowning achievement of company founder W.O. Bentley, the 8-litre built in 1930. To emphasis that point the Mulsanne was unveiled on the Pebble Beach centre stage next to W.O.'s own carefully preserved 8-litre. Conceived, styled and engineered entirely at Bentley's headquarters in Crewe, England, the Mulsanne, with its completely new and unique platform, goes into production next year in a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility within the Crewe factory. However, precious few details of the new car were revealed along with its styling. "There will be a lot more technical details revealed when the Mulsanne goes on show at Frankfurt (Motor Show in September)," Striebig says. "As only the fifth all-new Bentley to be engineered in the company's 90 year history it is an ideal opportunity to engineer in all the latest technology that may have previously been unavailable." Dr Franz-Josef Paefgen, chairman and chief executive of Bentley Motors, says the challenge set for engineers on the new car was to create a car to stand at the pinnacle of British luxury motoring. "They have responded to this challenge with real passion and the result is a luxury grand tourer that sets new standards in terms of comfort, effortless performance and hand-crafted refinement the very qualities for which Bentley is renowned," Dr Paefgen says. Lead designer for the Mulsanne project, Dirk van Braeckel, says the styling was inspired by the tradition of grand touring Bentleys. "From the very first hand sketches in the styling studio ... we have sought to evolve this story for a new generation of Bentley enthusiasts," van Braeckel says. The Bentley Mulsanne will begin product early next year with the first Australian cars expected to be delivered in around 12 months. "Given the global scramble for limited supply I think it would be fair to say that whatever numbers we can secure for Australia will be less than demand," Striebig says.