2006 Bentley Awd, Nav, Hs, Cs, Wg on 2040-cars

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Bentley and Skoda capitalize on the coronation

Most likely, King Charles won’t be riding in a Czech-made Skoda this weekend when he is crowned king of England, even though the car company has introduced a Coronation Edition in a “Royal Green” color “in honor of the Coronation.” However, should they ride to the fancy investiture at Westminster Abbey in a home-grown Bentley, the royal tushes of he and Queen Camilla may be resting on bespoke, handcrafted “cabin cushions” created by BentleyÂ’s “Dream Factory” to celebrate the occasion (not likely, since the royal couple is expected to travel in the 260-year-old Gold State Coach). The upcoming, day-long event has inspired lots of tchotchkes of course — chocolate Charleses, crowns for dogs, Lego kings — as well as an outpouring of affection by the public and commercial opportunities to sell them things royalty-related. On the matter of the new KingÂ’s rear end, the Bentley cushions are described as being quite fabulous. It took craftsmen three days to embroider them with the special “Coronation Emblem,” which consists, according to the firm, "of two separate thread colours ... three different colourways of the emblem were used, to contrast the individually-selected hides for different colours of cushions to match the interiors of the Bentleys that will use them." The colors of the cushions include Cricketball and Cumbrian Green, accented by piping of Beluga, Porpoise, Newmarket Tan and Imperial Blue respectively. Should they require more modern transportation, a fleet of Bentleys will be on hand for special guests.  Regarding the Skodas, the Royal Green color will be available to order by commoners as well as by the royal couple, available on selected Superb, Kodiaq and Octavia models in the UK.

Queen Elizabeth needs a new chauffeur - could it be you?

We don't often post job listings here on Autoblog – and especially not ones based overseas. But then it's not every day that a sovereign monarch is in the market for a new chauffeur. Yet that's precisely what we came across, and not just for any monarch, either: this listing is for a chauffeur to drive around the Queen of England. The listing on the official website of the British Monarchy specifies that the job in question – based at the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace – entails working "as part of a busy and supportive team tasked with driving members of the Royal Family, Household officials, guests and official visitors." That means being around some highly distinguished individuals, for what it's worth, but also getting access to some very rare machinery, the likes of which most people will never get close to: namely, the Bentley State Limousine, a vehicle designed and crafted in Crewe, based on the Arnage, specifically for use by Her Majesty and members of the royal household. Don't think that the proximity to one of the wealthiest families and heads of state in the world means the job would be what you might call "lucrative," though: it pays around $35k per year, which includes meals but not the mandatory lodging, the cost of which is deducted from the salary. Of course it is a government job, of sorts, so it comes with full benefits. And then Queen Elizabeth II has been known to drive herself around from time to time, when the mood strikes (and with impunity), so there could be a lot of downtime, too. News Source: The Royal HouseholdImage Credit: Bentley Government/Legal Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Bentley queen elizabeth ii chauffeur queen elizabeth

VW adding particulate filters to gas engines

Volkswagen is working hard to overcome the PR disaster that is its diesel emissions scandal, and part of its efforts is focusing, weirdly, on petrol engines. Starting in June 2017, the embattled German automaker will add particulate filters to the gas-powered Volkswagen Tiguan and Audi A5. The change will eventually impact nearly every direct-injected gas engine the VW Group makes. Audi? Particulate filter. Seat? Particulate filter. Even Bentley is going to get the tech, all in a bid to reduce soot emissions by 90 percent. In fact, by 2022 VAG expects 7 million of its vehicles to boast the emissions-cleaning tech, which has long been a fixture on diesel engines. "Following increases in efficiency and lower CO2 output, we are now bringing about a sustained reduction in the emission levels of our modern petrol engines by fitting particulate filters as standard," Volkswagen Group research and design boss Dr. Ulrich Eichhorn said in a statement. "In the future, all models will be equipped with the latest and most efficient SCR catalytic converter technology." VW's initial rollout focuses on the 1.4-liter, turbocharged Tiguan and the 2.0-liter, turbocharged A5. Considering the popularity of the 2.0-liter across the VW range, we'd expect it's only a matter of time before VW expands its particulate filters tech to additional gas-powered vehicles. Related Video: