Bentley has revealed full details for its latest flagship model – the new Mulsanne.
The Volkswagen-owned brand developed the Mulsanne from the ground up at its headquarters in Crewe, England and the goal was to deliver a vehicle that represents the pinnacle of British luxury motoring.
By any measure they have succeeded and this is a true Bentley – everywhere you look the traditional beautiful hand craftsmanship is evident. Each leather-wrapped steering wheel can take 15 hours to hand-stitch, the gleaming stainless steel interior trim is the result of a 10-hour finishing process and the wood veneer takes five weeks to turn from a root ball into a full set of mirror-matched fine-polished leaves.
That wood veneer is used to form a ring of wood waist-rail encircling the entire interior.
And responding to feedback from Bentley owners, a traditional tanning process has been reinstated for the leather trim to match the rich, worn leather smell that is part of the brand’s traditions. Some 24 standard interior colours are available for order.
Naturally each glorious interior is bristling with technology – not the least of which is the standard 14-speaker Naim audio system (a premium 20-speaker system is optional). Over 170 hours – almost half the entire build process – is dedicated to hand-crafting the interior of each Mulsanne.
Bentley’s designers have delivered stunning coachwork with the short front overhang and long rear overhang that are synonymous with all Bentley designs. Each body takes nine weeks to hand-craft and the detail around the beautifully formed D-pillars, which encase the rear window, is superb.
All around is the attention to detail demanded by Bentley customers – for example the door handles feature the traditional ‘knurling’ of their inboard surfaces for better grip.
Over 100 paint colours are available for order.
Performance is simply phenomenal – the twin-turbocharged 6.75-litre V8 is barely perceptible as it unleashes its 377kW/1020Nm…yes, that’s right 1020Nm of torque.
The all-new chassis is both lighter and stiffer than previous Bentleys and features a new air suspension with Continuous Damping Control (CDC). Standard wheels are 20-inch alloys or you can opt for 21-inch versions.
It’s not every day Bentley launches a new flagship model and customers throughout the world have eagerly awaited the new Mulsanne.
