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Bentley to show Mulsanne Le Mans Limited Edition at Pebble Beach

We already knew Bentley was planning a new Le Mans Limited Edition for its flagship Mulsanne, but we finally have our first info and images for this new model that celebrates the 90th anniversary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Fortunately, since these two studio images surely don't do the Mulsanne proper justice, it will be unveiled this week at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, and we'll be there to check it out.
As a refresher, the Bentley Mulsanne Le Mans Limited Edition stands out with diamond-quilted leather on the seats and door panels, sport-tuned steering and suspension, special quad exhaust finishers and two-piece alloy wheels with a dark accent and triple-spoke design. Along with this commemorative Mulsanne, Bentley will also have the Continental Le Mans Limited Edition and the Continental GT3 racecar on hand for the festivities in Monterey.
Scroll down for more info on the Mulsanne, as well as some information on a few of the ultra-rare Bentleys that will be auctioned off this weekend.

Bentley officially returns to racing at Gulf 12hr

For a company with a tendency to name its cars after parts of the Circuit de la Sarthe like Arnage and Mulsanne, Bentley sure has been gone from endurance sportscar racing for a long time. It famously won the 24 Hours of Le Mans five times in the 1920s, but didn't come back until 68 years later to win again in 2003. That was the last time Bentley competed on the world stage... until now.
Bentley first revealed its rekindled racing ambitions with the Continental GT3 at the 2012 Paris Motor Show. The car would be developed for privateer racers, and that's all led up to this point. Team M-Sport, which you may know better for having run Ford's World Rally Championship team, was charged with developing the car, and it entered the new racecar this past weekend in the Gulf 12 Hours in Abu Dhabi. There, on the Yas Marina Circuit in the United Arab Emirates, the Continental GT3 diced it with GT3 versions of the likes of the Ferrari 458, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and McLaren 12C.
So how did it fare on its first time out? Well the race is split into two six-hour sessions, and the Conti finished third in the first heat (behind the AF Corse Ferrari and Black Falcon Benz) and fourth in the second (just edged out by another 458 entered by Kessel Racing). Not a bad outcome for Bentley's first race in a decade. And the Abu Dhabi race was essentially a dress rehearsal for next season when the Continental GT3 will be entered in the full 2014 Blancpain Endurance Series.

Bentley unveils the Grand Convertible, a droptop Mulsanne Speed

Five years ago, when Bentley was preparing its farewell shindig for the Arnage, reports were that the Arnage's coupe and convertible siblings, the Brooklands and Azure, would get replacements on the Mulsanne platform. Obviously, that hasn't happened, although we were teased with the Mulsanne Vision Concept in 2012. Then, just this summer, we were again teased with rumors of a Brooklands and Azure one-two punch. While it still hasn't happened yet, Bentley's unveiling of the Grand Convertible seems to have put things in gear.
Not 'merely' a roofless Mulsanne, the Grand Convertible appears to be a droptop Mulsanne Speed, powered by a 6.75-liter engine with 530 horsepower and 811 pound-feet of torque, and fitted with the directional wheels only available on the Mulsanne Speed. Finished outside in Sequin Blue with a "liquid metal" hood and windshield frame and a burl walnut veneer on the tonneau cover - a similar combo used to introduce the Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupé eight years ago - the cabin is covered in Beluga leather with blue cross-stitching.
Company CEO Wolfgang Dürheimer says Bentley is watching customer reaction to the car, yet the press release says it's been "Developed to signify Bentley's intentions for the future." That sounds like better than even odds we'll be seeing this on the roads. For now, though, you can see it in the high-res gallery above, at the LA Auto Show starting this week, and at Art Basel in Miami after that, and you'll find a bit more info on it in the press release below.