Bentley auto news

VIDEO: New Grand Bentley teaser reveals round headlights, big grille are the real deal

Bentley seems to again be following in the footsteps of its corporate siblings at Audi with the latest teaser video

for the upcoming Grand Bentley. Like the last teaser for the A5 Sportback, this one features the company's lead designer, Dirk van Braeckel sketching the replacement for the Arnage.

Unlike the Audi video, we don't get to see the full profile of the new big Bentley, although a bunch of other details are shown along with comfirmation of a spy photo that appeared recently showing the round headlights. Specifically, from the rendering glimpses shown, it appears that a smaller round lamp sits outboard and lower down than the larger main lamp. This is an element that hearkens back to Bentley models of the 1950s. We'll be getting the full story on the new Crew car in a bit less than four weeks at the Pebble Beach Concours where it will be revealed publicly for the first time. You can check out the video after the jump.

Continue reading VIDEO: New Grand Bentley teaser reveals round headlights, big grille are the real deal

Spy Shots: New Grand Bentley test mule out in public

Expected to measure some 30 centimeters (that's about a foot) longer than the jurassic Arnage that it replaces, the new Grand Bentley should be just about the right size to compete with the Rolls-Royce Phantom - itself about the size of a truck. That shouldn't stop it from reaching close to 200 mph in true Bentley style, though. With such gargantuan proportions, nobody should be too surprised by the projected lack of a long-wheelbase version straight from the factory... really, how much longer would you expect?

Crewe warehouse opens doors to liquidate vintage Bentley and Rolls-Royce parts

Bentley spare parts warehouse in Crewe - Click above for high-res image gallery

The 143,000 square foot Bentley warehouse in Crewe, England, has got to be a dream come true for British motor enthusiasts. The facility, which sits adjacent to the Bentley Motors automobile factory, holds some 55,000 part lines totaling over seven million individual items for Bentleys made after 1955 (as well as Rolls-Royce automobiles built there between then and 2002 when the companies split under Volkswagen and BMW ownership, respectively). In late September, the warehouse will open its doors to anyone - owner, enthusiast or trader - interested in stopping by to pick out that elusive part they were looking for, from indicator lights to engine blocks and everything in between.

With the all-new replacement for the Arnage line rumbling around the corner in August, Bentley evidently needs the space and motoring Anglophiles stand to benefit. Details in the press release after the jump and high-res images in the gallery below.

Gallery: Bentley warehouse - Crewe, England

Continue reading Crewe warehouse opens doors to liquidate vintage Bentley and Rolls-Royce parts

Derek Bell runs the Bentley Continental Supersports at Goodwood [w/VIDEO]

At the Geneva Motor Show in March, Bentley unveiled its fastest most powerful road car in its 90 year history in the form of the Continental Supersports. Besides significantly reducing the weight of the existing Continental GT, the Supersports marked the first step of Bentley's move reduce its carbon dioxide emissions, in this case through the use of ethanol as a fuel for the 6.0-liter twelve-cylinder engine.

The Supersports is the first flex-fuel vehicle from the British luxury marque. At this month's Goodwood Festival of Speed, Bentley asked repeat Le Mans winner Derek Bell to spend the weekend ferrying lucky passengers up the hillclimb course in a prototype at elevated speeds. While we couldn't be there to experience the ride for ourselves, Bentley has just released the next best thing - a gallery of high-res images and a video that you can check out after the jump.

Gallery: Goodwood 2009: Bentley Continental Supersports

Continue reading Derek Bell runs the Bentley Continental Supersports at Goodwood [w/VIDEO]

Hot Shot: Another (official) pic of the New Grand Bentley

Car magazine has been keeping up on the story of the New Grand Bentley, aided by someone at Crewe who's been snapping illicit shots of the vehicle. This is Bentley's next official photo, however, and unless the British automaker has thrown a MacGuffin into the plot, it appears to contradict one of Car's assertions when speaking of its own spy shots: "It's not clearly visible on these shots, but the rear door handles will be hidden...." Have a look at the high-res photo and you'll see the opposite of a hidden door handle.

According to Car, the "Project Kimberley" Bentley will get a version of the company's long serving 6.75-liter V8 that's "been given a thorough makeover" and all-wheel-drive, but no long-wheebase version. According to us, while it is impossible to be sure, it looks like the trailing edge of the C-pillar might extend beyond the rear window, which would be appealingly Euro-gangster if true.

And if you're keeping track, four of the nine movies are now available for viewing at www.newgrandbentley.com. Remember, though, that we're only about halfway through the marathon tease, so don't expect to see much. You can read more about the car's unveiling at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance next month after the jump.

Gallery: New Grand Bentley

Continue reading Hot Shot: Another (official) pic of the New Grand Bentley

Bentley gets a Brazilian: Continental GT by pop artist Romero Britto

Bentley Continental GT by Romeo Britto - Click above to enlarge

With dozens of exterior paint shades and even more choices for the interior, there's no shortage of color combinations on the Bentley Continental GT. Beyond that, the British automaker's Mulliner customization division will be glad to set yours up any way you want... for a price, of course. But some people are never satisfied with the options laid out before them; people like Romero Britto, the creator of the rather, um..."intriguing" example you see here.

The Brazilian pop artist, whose work hangs in such prestigious museums as New York's MoMA and Guggenheim and the homes of celebrities and notables including Elton John, Governor Schwarzenegger and the Rothschilds, comes from an impoverished village and uses cheerful colors and lively shapes to brighten people's spirits. Do they belong on a Bentley? That's a matter of taste, but curious connoisseurs can see it in person in Britto's exhibition at the Automobil Forum Unter den Linden in Germany from July 10 to September 6, after which the one-of-a-kind creation will be auctioned off to benefit multiple sclerosis and the mentally handicapped. Details in the press release after the jump.

Continue reading Bentley gets a Brazilian: Continental GT by pop artist Romero Britto

Born to be Bentley: One-off Crewe chopper

As similar as the two industries are, there aren't as many automobile/motorcycle crossovers as you might otherwise think. A handful of carmakers (Honda, Suzuki, Peugeot, BMW, Triumph once upon a time...) also make motorcycles. Ford has their Harley-Davidson edition F-Series pick-up trucks. Some small sports cars use motorcycle engines, and there are some big motorcycles (really big) that use car engines. Fiat sponsors world champion Valentino Rossi's MotoGP Yamaha bike. And, once in a while, we see a custom chopper decked out to look like a particular automobile. We've eyeballed our share of Ferrari-inspired motorbikes, but this is something else entirely: a Bentley chopper.

Of course, there's nothing particularly Bentley about this chopper other than the trim, so don't go expecting a 6.75-liter V8 or a twin-turbo W12 sprung between two wheels. But the fit and finish look rather impressive. The greenish-grey paint finish is complemented by a soft tan leather saddle and capped with a "Flying B" emblem on the gas tank. Pretty sweet ride from the look of things, and even if it is a one-off, it's one more link between between motor vehicles with two wheels and those with four.

Spy Shots: New Grand Bentley pics smuggled out of Crewe factory

Under development with the code-name Project Kimberley, the new Bentley is slated to replace the aging Arnage sedan at the top of the company's line-up and do battle with the Rolls-Royce Phantom. With technological input from its sister companies under the Volkswagen auto umbrella, the as-yet unnamed Grand Bentley promises to take a big step forward from the Arnage, which still carries its mechanicals and platform from the days when the automaker was under the same roof as Rolls -- not in direct competition. The spy shots reveal mesh grilles, LED lights, a retractable hood ornament (like the Phantom's) and a swooping roofline reminiscent of the classic 50's-era R-Type Continental. Looks pretty sweet, and we'll probably get an even better glimpse as the car's unveiling later this summer approaches with the pace of...well, a speeding Bentley.

VIDEO: New Grand Bentley teasers don't reveal anything new

Few cars have been as long in the making as the upcoming "grand Bentley." The long-awaited replacement to the Arnage is tipped to debut sometime this summer - possibly at Pebble Beach in August - but the stoic British automaker is intent on teasing us with little video clips every step along the way. (About nine of them in all if you look at the dedicated website.) Unfortunately, if these first two clips are any indication, the teasers will hardly be showing us anything new, just some hoity-toity piano music and fountain pen-scribed statements about what the brand is meant to stand for accompanied by the same shot of the new model's front bonnet. Follow the jump to see for yourself.

Continue reading VIDEO: New Grand Bentley teasers don't reveal anything new

The house of the Winged B teases the New Grand Bentley [w/VIDEO]

Aspiring Thomas Crowns have been waiting for a brand new Bentley to replace the Arnage for too long. Grab your monocles and have a look, chaps - what you see above is an initial taste of "the height of British luxury motoring" and "the purest expression of the Bentley spirit." Simply called the New Grand Bentley, this is what will replace the long-serving Arnage (and its 50-year-old V8?) as Brahmin at the top of the Bentley caste.

What can we discern from this shadowy glimpse? Unless the Photoshopped lighting effects deceive us, the bonnet goes from being a trap hood to a clamshell affair; the fenders lose one of their detail lines; and if the perspective is accurate, we are loving the swept grille. For you purist Anglophiles, be proud: the car has been designed and engineered in Crewe, and will be built there to boot.

Anything more than that will have to wait for the car to debut this summer. In the meantime, you can also visit www.NewGrandBentley.com (which will probably be a glamorous tease served on a silver tray), scrutinize a high-res version of the photo above, and check out a 19-second video clip after the jump.

Gallery: New Grand Bentley

Continue reading The house of the Winged B teases the New Grand Bentley [w/VIDEO]