Intro:
Bentley’s latest offering, the Mulsanne, aims to reassert the British brand’s primacy at the very top of the luxury automotive field. Bespoke recently visited the Highlands of Scotland to put Bentley’s pride and joy through its paces.
The first car designed entirely by the company since W.O. Bentley’s eight-litre in 1930, the Mulsanne marks a return to the company’s roots. As such, the anticipation surrounding the vehicle has been intense. With the demise of the Arnage and the ongoing evolution of Rolls Royce’s Phantom and Ghost lines, Bentley found itself under the spotlight. Thankfully, the company has responded, producing their finest motorcar in years.
Visiting the factory in Crewe, it was soon apparent that the company’s acclaimed production values are alive and well. Walking along the line and seeing the attention lavished on each vehicle was astounding. There appeared to very little movement compared to other factories, but then each process on a Bentley takes around of 30 minutes, as opposed to 30 seconds at other factories, and the vast majority of the work is done by hand with the aluminium body alone taking 125 hours to complete.
By far the most impressive aspect of the tour dealt with the bespoke nature of the Mulsanne. There are over 100 different exterior colours to choose from and if that’s not enough, the company will match any colour you present them with when you add the 24 variations of two-tone interior combinations between the leather of the seats and the wooden panels surrounding you, the wealth of options becomes apparent. You can monogram almost any surface on the interior, and add any number of high-tech gadgets. Here’s an interesting fact, it takes the skins of 15 cows to cover the interior of a Mulsanne, that’s an indication of the quality and luxurious nature of the Mulsanne’s cabin for you. You really are spoilt for choice.
First things first: The Mulsanne’s a beautiful car. For such a large vehicle, it’s 30 cm longer than the Arnage, the Mulsanne doesn’t appear overly large; the size of the car is cleverly disguised by lines that continue from the bonnet through to the side panels. The bonnet is made from a single piece of metal using new vacuum molding techniques, Bentley spokespeople doubted if any other manufacturer could produce such a large, styled piece, as a result there are no lines to spoil the effect.
The interior is top rate, make no mistake about it. The attention to detail is stunning. Every seam in the leather is hand-stitched, the amount of work to turn those 15 cows into the plush leather seats on evidence is mind-boggling. Wooden veneers, chosen from walnut, Piano Black, oak, Bird’s Eye Maple, Vavona, Olive Ash and Sapelli Pommele surround you, forming a continuous band of wood that spans the entire cabin in an unbroken line. Everything drips with opulence and attention to detail.
In terms of technological toys, the GPS was perfectly functional and didn’t let us down, or confuse us at any point. A CD changer, MP3 player integration and a 60 GB hard drive round of what is a comprehensive audio system, boasting, so I was told, the loudest production sound system in the world designed by Naim.
The one thing that hits you as soon as you head onto the road is the silence. Bentley are particularly proud of this, claiming that the car was quieter than Roll’s Ghost. Certainly, it was possible to chat to someone in the back seat without raising your voice at all. The Mulsanne’s clearly designed with the passenger in mind. All the usual mod-cons are there, temperature controls, drinks holders, picnic tables on the back of the front seats, it’s all fairly standard fair for the company, but executed with a loving attention to detail.
The 6.7-litre V8 delivers power at a touch of the pedal without proving brash. It’s reassuring to know that there’s 505 horsepower at your disposal whenever you need it. Not merely powerful, the Mulsanne features the first Bentley engine with cylinder-deactivation, which shuts down four cylinders while cruising to save fuel, around 15 per cent, according to the designers. In this day and age, anything that cuts down on the costs is a welcome addition.
Tearing through the roads of Scotland at high speed in the Mulsanne was an interesting experience. The car was rock steady at all times, refined and smooth over the undulating hills and valleys, the silence added to the impression that you really were cocooned away from the world. Having said that, the Mulsanne made short work of any number of Sunday drivers as we sped around the Scottish coast. In short, be you cruising along or opening up the V8, the Mulsanne delivers both power and comfort at all times.
Responsive and sharp in the turn, the Bentley’s latest is clearly a driver’s car. At no point was losing control a concern, despite occasionally giving the car its head along snaking, narrow roads. Nipping through the lanes around the hotel, I was impressed by the responsiveness, be it when I whipped the wheel over or stepped on the pedal to overtake an errant tractor; the Mulsanne, for such a large car, performed exceptionally well, whatever I asked it do.
The fact that such a large machine can be at once be both fast and responsive is intriguing, the Mulsanne is most definitely an option for the serious driver and the ceo alike. It’s hard to see where the compromises have been made and it’s hard to think of any. Perhaps the boot isn’t as large as it could be. But then again, it’s made out of carbon fibre to enable signals to be received without a shark fin aerial. Honestly, it’s hard to point to a flaw when it comes to the Mulsanne.
Bentleys are known as executive’s cars and, as such, the passenger’s experience was something I was eager to try out. The rear seats are spacious with plenty of legroom, the extra 30 cm really becomes apparent when you stretch out your legs. The environmental controls are finely-crafted, the picnic table perfect for when you want to crack out the broadsheets and the arm rest-cum-cupholder is nicely positioned. Bentley is able to add in a wide variety of extras, it’s merely a question of asking for them, as such there’s plenty of scope to add in media and entertainment gadgets. Perhaps the ultimate commendation is that a colleague hopped into the back while I drove and promptly dozed off. A stinging indictment of my driving, or testament to Bentley’s luxurious interior, I don’t know, but I hope it was the latter.
Bentley is at the top of the luxury car market for a reason and the Mulsanne is the finest car to roll out of Crewe in years. It’s not quite in the league of the Aston Martin Rapide when it comes to the drive, but then that’s not what it’s about, it’s in the detail that the Mulsanne blows its competitors away. A bespoke machine, the Mulsanne certainly is and no other car offers same degree of luxury to both driver and passenger. With the Mulsanne Bentley has hit back at Rolls Royce and sits at the head of the table once again.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Engine 6.7-litre V8
Power 505 bhp
0-100 km/h 5.3 seconds
Top Speed 296km/h
Prices start at USD 285,000
DEALERS
Al Habtoor Royal Car
Al Moroor Road,
Abu Dhabi
+971 2 642 3114
Ahmed Zayani & Sons W.L.L.
Post Box No. 26332,
131 Shaikh Salman Highway,
Zinj 358,
Manama, Bahrain
+973 172 38 822
Al Habtoor Motors
Al Ittihad Road,
PO Box 19879, Dubai
+971 4 294 4492
MM Group
9 El Obour Buildings,
Salah Salem Street,
Heliopolis,
Cairo, Egypt
+202 2401 7329
Bentley Al Khobar - Al Ghassan Motors
Delmon Building,
Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz Street,
P.O. Box 76320,
Al Khobar, KSA
+966 03 814 4443
Bentley Jeddah - Al Ghassan Motors
Madina Road,
PO Box 127005,
Jeddah, KSA
+966 2 256 4922
Bentley Riyadh - Al Ghassan Motors
Prince Mohammed Bin Abdul Aziz Street,
Abdul Latif Building,
Riyadh, KSA
+966 (1) 217 3838
Al Zayani Trading Co
PO Box 41,
Safat,
13001, Kuwait
+965 2473 5199
Bentley Beirut - Saad & Trad SAL
Rue Corniche du Fleuve,
PO Box 16-6072 Achrafieh,
Beirut, Lebanon
+961 (1) 613 670
Bentley Oman
Rumailah Street,
PO Box 1620,
Wattayah, Oman
+968 24 562 729
Bentley Doha
Suhaim Bin Hamad Street,
Doha,Qatar
+974 444 5113
