2007 Bently Arnage T - Mulliner Level 2 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

New Bentley interior veneer sourced from American Red Gum trees

Bentley is turning stateside for its newest exclusive wood interior finish, sourcing its first new veneer in five years from American Red Gum trees found in Mississippi wetlands. Bentley calls the new veneer Liquid Amber, a reference to the wood's perfumed scent. The red-hued wood undergoes a weeks-long natural smoking process to deepen its brown luster. Afterward, the veneer is then transported to Bentley's wood shop in Crewe, England, where it's examined alongside the six other types of veneers harvested from China to Canada to determine suitability, based on a high-burr density, minimal sapwood and a lack of bark growth or structural defects. Bentley says it rejects between 30 percent and 70 percent of all veneers offered. Raw veneer is then cut to a precise 0.6-millimeter and tested for stability in UV light and consistency from tree to tree. The whole process takes at least 18 months before the veneer is installed in one of Bentley's vehicles, which start at $189,000 for the Flying Spur sedan. Also known as the Sweetgum tree, the American Red Gum is native to lowland areas of the southeastern United States. It was once used commercially for soaps, adhesives and pharmaceuticals but is valued today primarily for use in furniture, cabinetry and interior finishing. Bentley says it harvests the trees only twice a year due to restricted access to the wetlands where it sources the wood. Bentley also announced it has begun using slate and quartzite stone veneers sourced from select quarries in India. They're split from a larger stone piece, cured using fiberglass and a bespoke resin, and shaped and finished by hand by the Mulliner coach building team in Crewe.Related Video: Featured Gallery Bentley wood finish Image Credit: Bentley Bentley Luxury bentley flying spur

Bentley CEO says Mulsanne Convertible isn't going to happen [w/poll]

Bentley and Rolls-Royce may be as direct as competitors get, but that doesn't mean they go head-to-head on every model. Bentley is arguably more focused on its Continental line, with the pricier Mulsanne branching off of it. Rolls-Royce, meanwhile, only recently expanded (relatively) down-market with the Wraith and the Ghost on which it's based. For Rolls, it's long been about the Phantom and its coupe and convertible variants. And Bentley doesn't pose much of a challenge in that stratospheric segment.
Crewe discontinued the old Arnage-based Brooklands coupe and Azure convertible in 2009 and 2011, respectively, and hasn't rolled out a successor for either in the few years since. The high-end British automaker revealed a conceptual convertible based on the Mulsanne at Pebble Beach Concours last year and was said to be moving ahead with production plans, but the latest intel suggests that Bentley has taken it off the development table.
This according to Car and Driver, which spoke with Bentley's new chief exec Wolfgang Schreiber at the Frankfurt Motor Show. According to Schreiber, there just isn't enough demand worldwide to justify the development costs - even if it is based on the existing flagship sedan. Apparently Bentley has evaluated that beyond the US and Europe, they couldn't sell enough of them in other markets to make it worthwhile. We'd imagine some Middle-Eastern sheikhs might like to get their hands on a few, but apparently the higher priority is getting the Falcon sport-ute out the door.

And the first Bentley Bentayga goes to... Queen Elizabeth II

The Bentley Bentayga aims to be a lot of things to a select few people. But as the world's fastest, most powerful, and (arguably) most luxurious SUV on the market, it could all boil down to bragging rights for some. So who will get to enjoy the privilege of receiving the very first one? Probably the one person in the world who needs to brag the least: Queen Elizabeth II. The sovereign monarch of the United Kingdom (and more current and former commonwealth countries than we care to count) already rides around in a Bentley State Limousine specially made for the purpose and based on the old Arnage. But she'll now be adding a new Bentayga to her royal motorpool, using it specifically to go hunting at one of her estates in Scotland. She does, after all, own several in the country – including the official Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh and (more likely) her private Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire. Wherever she chooses to drive it, that's got to hurt for Jaguar Land Rover. The rival British automaker has been supplying the royal family with Range Rovers for years. Then again, both companies – alongside Aston Martin and Vauxhall – all hold royal warrants for supplying goods to Her Majesty. Given how many vehicles the royal family must own (and how the Queen has been known to drive herself about), we're sure there's room for all of Britain's finest. Watch Bentley's American CEO Michael Winkler discuss the Bentayga with a spitting image of Rob Cordry in the video above from Bloomberg. Related Video: