From its brand-new post-war home in Crewe, Bentley redefined itself with the prescient MkVI sports saloon. Glen Waddington drives the desirable HJ Mulliner six-light version.
Some of the most popular coachbuilt bodies on the Bentley MkVI chassis were the advanced ‘Lightweight’ saloons by H.J. Mulliner. While their lightness may only have been relative, their individuality and character was never in doubt. Today, they’re something of a bargain, too.
Although undeniably good-looking and very fast, is the Aston Martin Rapide also spacious and luxurious enough to compete with the epitome of sumptuousness, a Bentley Flying Spur?
In 1950 Rolls-Royce’s Chief Projects Engineer, Ivan Evernden, had an idea for a two-seat Bentley sports car called the Blizzard. This year, that dream finally came true – and we’ve driven it.
The Continental nameplate is one that Bentley returned to time and again, yet the least-known variant is the most luxurious: the Bentley-badged convertibles built alongside the Rolls-Royce Corniche from 1985 to 1995.
The politics behind racing are sometimes more intriguing than the on-track action itself. When the VW Group acquired Bentley from Vickers in 1998, it immediately set about picking up the pieces of a brand that was by then reduced to a poor cousin of Rolls-Royce. This mission found further fervour through the painful reminder that not only had VW lost the bid for Rolls-Royce to BMW; but the latter would also win Le Mans the year thereafter.
Jonathan Gould tried other luxurious super-saloons and even a younger Bentley before finding what he was looking for – the Arnage Red Label. So what makes it so special?
Rolls-Royce owner and enthusiast John Waine has prized the best of British luxury since his youth. Today he’ll drive the model of his teenage dreams, the 1958 Bentley S-Series.
When Rolls-Royce collaborated with Italian coachbuilder Pininfarina for its new 1970s flagship, the Camargue was the distinctive but divisive outcome. Almost 50 years on, the car is still a contentious subject.
Ron Webster overcame adversity to win an apprenticeship with Rolls-Royce that became a 35-year career, then after retirement he achieved an equally unlikely dream – his own Bentley, despite being unable to hold a driving licence.
The idea of a sports limousine seems like an oxymoron, but a few minutes with a Bentley Flying Spur like this 2012 example shows that Bentley achieved something we’d once have thought impossible.
The 8-Litre ‘Dead Silent 100 mph car’ was W.O. Bentley’s masterpiece, in the view of many observers. Because they were made in tiny numbers, any encounter with an 8-litre is to be savoured, as our man in California, Steve Natale, discovered.
Opportunity knocked when a coachbuilder invented cantilevered sliding doors.We drive one of seven Bentley 4. Parallel-Door DHCs to test the novel system.
Cars can leave a profound impression on our childhood, and as car enthusiasts we can probably all think of one we wish our parents had never sold. David Watt did better than that – he bought it and brought it home.
