Tag Archives: Bentley

NEW CARS

Bentley EXP 15: The Blue Train Rides Again

There are concept cars, and then there are Bentley concept cars—rolling cathedrals to excess that make you want to cancel your mortgage and pledge allegiance to Crewe. The newest of the breed, the Bentley EXP 15, has just broken cover at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and let’s just say, it’s less “design vision” and more “gilded thunderbolt”.

Now, don’t get too excited: Bentley insists this isn’t a production car. But don’t believe a word of it. Concepts like this are the smoke signals of future Bentleys, and this one shouts two things loud and clear: the brand’s styling future is bold, and its first fully electric car is going to be devastatingly handsome.

At first glance, the EXP 15 looks like it was dreamt up by a designer with one eye on the future and the other firmly on a glass of brandy in 1930. The upright grille, the impossibly long “endless” bonnet, and the rearward cabin scream heritage, specifically a tip of the trilby to the legendary Blue Train Bentley Speed Six Gurney Nutting coupé. That car once outran a locomotive across France. This one, we suspect, could outrun Wi-Fi.

But Bentley being Bentley, it doesn’t stop at nostalgia. Slide your gaze along the EXP 15 and you’ll see the five pillars of Bentley’s new design language taking shape. There’s “Upright Elegance” (a fender line so aristocratic it practically demands a title), the “Iconic Grille” reimagined for the battery age, the “Endless Bonnet Line” (longer than your Amazon wishlist), “Resting Beast” stance (think jaguar about to pounce, not the car, the animal), and the “Prestigious Shield” at the rear, framing a redesigned winged-B badge with all the subtlety of a jewel-encrusted signet ring.

Inside, it’s Bentley theatre at its most audacious. Three seats, just like the Blue Train coupé of 95 years ago, but updated with clever storage for luggage, and yes, even your dog. Imagine telling your cocker spaniel he gets bespoke Bentley accommodation—try not to let the butler hear you.

Robin Page, Bentley’s design director, described Pebble Beach as the “perfect audience” to debut the car. He’s not wrong. Monterey Car Week is crawling with billionaires, collectors, and enthusiasts so discerning they’d send a bottle of Dom Pérignon back if the bubbles looked lethargic. And they loved it.

To sweeten the nostalgia hit, Bentley reunited the EXP 15 with the original 1930 Blue Train Speed Six, both having made the pilgrimage from Crewe. The two cars posed together along California’s 17-Mile Drive, soaking in the Pacific sunshine like a pair of aristocrats comparing yacht sizes.

Of course, now the EXP 15 heads back home to Crewe, to Bentley’s new three-storey Design Studio, where it will continue to influence the cars that you and I will actually be able to buy (or dream about buying). If this is a taste of Bentley’s electric future, it’s looking less like the end of an era and more like a rebirth in velvet slippers.

One thing’s for sure: if the Blue Train had to race today, it wouldn’t stand a chance.

Source: Bentley

News

Bentley Mulliner Ombre—The Future of Handcrafted Paintwork, Now Available to Order

At this year’s Monterey Car Week, Bentley used the stage of The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering to debut something that feels less like automotive paintwork and more like artistry on wheels. It’s called Ombre by Mulliner, and it’s one of the most technically demanding finishes ever attempted at Bentley’s famed Dream Factory in Crewe, England.

Bentley Mulliner Ombre—The Future of Handcrafted Paintwork, Now Available to Order

The debut canvas? A Continental GT Speed—already one of the most powerful and luxurious grand tourers in the world. But this one-off example is no ordinary GT. Its exterior wears a hypnotic fade that shifts seamlessly from a vibrant Topaz at the nose to a deep Windsor Blue at the tail, with the transition flowing along the car’s muscular haunches. Even the 22-inch swept 10-spoke wheels join the spectacle, mirroring the bodywork’s front-to-rear tonal shift.

56 Hours of Pure Craftsmanship

Creating the Ombre effect isn’t as simple as layering one shade over another. Bentley’s paint technicians begin by coating the car in the chosen contrast colors—front and rear—before meticulously applying the blend in stages. Each layer uses paint tinted by hand, employing traditional mixing methods. Achieving the perfect fade requires roughly 56 hours of painstaking labor, as the craftsmen constantly adapt to the way the paints behave in combination.

The result is a finish that’s both uniform and unique—no two Ombre cars will ever be identical. To maintain quality and visual harmony, Mulliner offers three curated color combinations designed to ensure the transition looks natural and flawless to the naked eye.

A Cabin That Mirrors the Exterior Drama

Inside, the theme continues. Mulliner’s Bespoke Studio has extended the gradient concept into the cabin, where the front seats, steering wheel, and dashboard are cloaked in Topaz hide, fading elegantly into the deep Beluga leather at the rear. Adding a spark of contrast, a Dragonfly accent color highlights seat piping and stitching across the cabin.

To balance the visual drama, tactile materials were carefully chosen: Satin Beluga veneers line the instrument panel, center console, and treadplates, while the latest tech appointments—Bentley’s Rotating Display, the Naim for Bentley audio system, and the Dark Chrome Interior Specification—ensure the GT Speed feels as modern as it looks bespoke.

From One-Off to Commissionable Reality

Though the car shown in Monterey began as a personal commission, Bentley has now opened the door for clients worldwide to order one of these Ombre finishes through Mulliner’s network. For collectors and enthusiasts, it’s a chance to turn their Continental into a rolling piece of automotive art—one that’s as much about patience, craftsmanship, and vision as it is horsepower and torque.

With Ombre by Mulliner, Bentley once again reaffirms its position not only as a manufacturer of ultra-luxury performance cars but as a true curator of automotive artistry. The fade may be subtle, but its impact on the GT Speed’s presence is unforgettable.

Source: Bentley

NEW CARS

Bentley’s First Batur Convertible Is a Bespoke Symphony of Power and Craftsmanship

Bentley has unveiled the first of its ultra-exclusive Batur Convertibles — a bespoke automotive sculpture born from the creative partnership between Mulliner, Bentley’s in-house coachbuilding division, and a visionary client. Representing the pinnacle of personalization and performance, this one-of-one creation is a bold new chapter in Bentley’s bespoke lineage.

At first glance, the Batur Convertible is unmistakably a grand tourer with presence. Finished in shimmering Opalite paintwork, its silhouette is dissected by a black gloss racing stripe flanked by fine Mandarin pinstripes, stretching from the radiator grille over the bonnet and cockpit ‘airbridge’ to the rear deck. The stripe doesn’t end there — it reappears as bespoke embroidery over the rear tonneau cover, connecting past and present with a tactile nod to classic coachbuilt racers.

This is no static showpiece. Beneath its elegant exterior lies the most powerful version of Bentley’s legendary W12 engine — a hand-assembled, 6.0-litre twin-turbocharged unit delivering a staggering 740 bhp. It’s a farewell tour de force for the W12, engineered with all the refinement one would expect of a marque that’s been redefining luxury since 1919.

The Batur Convertible’s dramatic visual language continues through every detail. Its signature matrix grille is finished in gloss Beluga black, accented with Mandarin highlights, echoing the bold contrast seen on the bespoke five-spoke alloy wheels.

Yet it’s inside the cabin where Mulliner’s craftsmanship — and the client’s meticulous vision — truly come to life.

The interior is a ‘one plus one’ arrangement, where the driver and passenger zones are presented as contrasting, yet harmoniously balanced, environments. The driver is immersed in Beluga black leather and Alcantara, accentuated by Mandarin hide that wraps the console, instrumentation, and door waistrails. The Batur pattern is subtly picked out in Linen and Mandarin stitching on the seat bolsters and door inserts, emphasizing a motorsport-inspired focus.

Meanwhile, the passenger is cocooned in a lighter, more relaxed environment. A Linen hide and Alcantara seat, detailed with Mandarin stitching, provides a sharp contrast to the driver’s cockpit. Even the rear luggage area follows this split-personality concept: Beluga on the driver’s side, Linen on the passenger’s, with coordinated luggage sets and even color-matched bespoke key cases.

Every surface, switch, and detail has been obsessively refined. The fascia and door waistrails feature a satin black engine-turned finish, while the centre console gleams with gloss Beluga veneer. Titanium accents are found throughout — from the air vent rings and rotary controls to the gearshift paddles and the steering wheel’s top dead centre marker. Even the illuminated sill treadplates are unique, bearing the Batur name and production number.

The Batur Convertible made its dynamic debut as “Car Zero” at the 2025 Goodwood Festival of Speed, dressed in a dramatic Vermilion Gloss over Vermilion Satin livery. It now heads to the US for Monterey Car Week, where it will undoubtedly command attention among the world’s most discerning collectors.

As the third Mulliner Coachbuilt model — following the Bacalar barchetta and Batur coupé — the Batur Convertible represents a masterclass in modern coachbuilding. Production is strictly limited, and each car is co-designed with its future owner using a bespoke visualisation tool, allowing an infinite number of color, material, and finish combinations.

The result? No two Batur Convertibles will ever be alike. They are as much about personal expression as they are about automotive excellence.

In an era increasingly defined by digital replication and mass production, Bentley’s Batur Convertible stands defiantly as a rolling work of art — a symphony of engineering, craftsmanship, and individuality.

Source: Bentley