Bentley Motors is today announcing full details of its new Mulsanne – the ultimate expression of British automotive luxury.
Handcrafted in Crewe, England, by a team of highly skilled artisans, the Mulsanne is the flagship of the Bentley range and represents everything the British brand knows about building the world’s most powerful, most luxurious cars.
For the first time, the Mulsanne family now comprises three distinct models, all with their own unique abilities and attributes. The Mulsanne, Mulsanne Speed and Mulsanne Extended Wheelbase all share Bentley’s unrivalled levels of attention to detail and craftsmanship, while at the same time catering for the needs of individual customers.
The new Mulsanne Extended Wheelbase, for example, has been designed with the rear-seat passenger in mind. An additional 250 mm of rear legroom, airline-style extending legrests and a rear compartment sunroof combine to create the most relaxing automotive environment in the world. The Mulsanne Speed, meanwhile, is tailored for the driver with 537 PS (530 bhp / 395 kW) and 1,100 Nm (811 lb.ft) of torque resulting in a 0-60 mph time of just 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 190 mph.
A suite of elegantly executed styling revisions mark the new Mulsanne out from its predecessor. The entire front-end style of the car (forward of the A pillar) has been completely redesigned. The fenders, bonnet, radiator shell, grilles, lights – and bumpers fore and aft – have all been updated, giving the car a more modern and integrated appearance.
On the inside, occupants will of course find the world’s finest handcrafted wood, leather and metal fittings, and the new Mulsanne also boasts redesigned seats, new door trims and armrests, unique glass switchgear and an industry-leading palette of 24 exquisite hide colours.
The new Mulsanne also features a suite of innovative, cutting-edge technologies. A new touchscreen infotainment system has been developed for the Mulsanne.
Wolfgang Dürheimer, chairman and chief executive of Bentley Motors, comments: “The Mulsanne is the epitome of Bentley’s DNA – exquisite, individual and powerful. It defines luxury in the automotive world and offers a uniquely Bentley blend of luxury and performance.
The front of the new Bentley Mulsanne has been entirely redesigned, with the resultant look exuding a more modern, integrated air.
The new, imposing front end is dominated by a large stainless steel vertical-vane grille, 80 mm wider than before, that celebrates the great models of the past, such as the 8 Litre of 1930, Embiricos and R-Type Continental. Through these vertical vanes the Bentley matrix grille is visible.
Positioned either side of this are a pair of floating all-LED headlamps. These new units feature advanced adaptive technology and greatly increased night vision, with beam patterns that automatically adjust to suit the driving conditions. The LED lights sit flush within the seamless superformed aluminium front fenders. Innovative design features, like the discreet chrome-capped headlamp washers that sit within the adjacent outer lamps, demonstrate an ethos of precise execution of detail. A new horizon line is also created across the front of the Mulsanne by raising the outer lamps so that their bases are in line with the main headlights.
The new one-piece bumper, radiator shell and bonnet integrate seamlessly with flush joins creating more visual width and presence. These features flow down to a lower vane-grille section, which is in turn flanked by ‘B’ signature matrix elements – pushed further out to the corners by 53 mm either side – and finished in bright chrome.
The brightware detailing continues on either side of the Mulsanne with a new B-shaped wing vent incorporated into the lower section of the fender.
At the rear, this more planted appearance continues with new tail lights and a redesigned bumper. The bumper, which has 26 mm wider lower corners and a strong light-catching feature line, creates a more purposeful appearance. The new tail lamps incorporate a ‘B’ theme with light guides creating an instantly recognisable signature – particularly in the dark.
On the inside, the Bentley Mulsanne’s reputation for offering the finest automotive interior in the world is further enhanced. It takes more than 150 hours to create the sumptuous soft-touch leather interior, which now features redesigned seats, armrests and door trims. The Mulsanne’s seats – the industry benchmark for comfort – are now available in two new styles: Fluted, or Quilted. Customers also have the choice of 24 hide colours and single or duo-tone finishes.
Hand-selected veneers form pure and elegant surfaces throughout the cabin, and each of the 40 pieces are shaped by Bentley’s artisans from a choice of 13 different veneers, and finished with trademark attention to detail. Elsewhere in the cabin, bright-polished stainless steel, unique glass switchgear, traditional knurled controls and deep-pile carpets enhance the pinnacle luxury environment.
A suite of innovative and advanced technologies have been added, ensuring that the new Mulsanne is as technologically advanced as it is luxurious.
The new Mulsanne features a completely new infotainment system, boasting class-leading navigation technology. It also features a selection of on-board infotainment systems that raise the bar for audio and visual entertainment on the move.
The core of the new system is an all-new touch-screen-based infotainment platform with additional haptic controls, classic analogue gauges and state-of-the-art rear-seat entertainment. The main 8” display touch screen is connected to a 60 GB solid-state hard drive for the storage of on-board media.
High Beam Assist automatically switches between high beam and dipped headlights when oncoming vehicles are detected. The system also adapts the shape of the light beam according to vehicle speed in three separate modes – Town, Country and Motorway.
In the new Mulsanne, the mighty 6¾-litre V8 develops 512 PS (505 bhp / 377 kW) and 1,020 Nm (752 lb.ft) of torque. This immense power – channelled though an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission – is available from just above idle right across the rev range, ensuring that with even the slightest input the driver is immediately rewarded with phenomenal acceleration.
The sprint to 60 mph is dispatched in just 5.1 seconds en route to a top speed of 184 mph (296 km/h). The Mulsanne’s V8 engine features key technologies such as cylinder de-activation and variable cam phasing, which reduce both fuel consumption (19.3 mpg / 14.6 L/100 km on the combined cycle) and CO2 emissions (342 g/km).
New Mulsanne range to make global debut at 86th Geneva Motor Show
