Mulsanne Bentley announces Mulsanne Vision Concept, a new flagship drop-top

[LaArtist]

Yeah damn VAG for not readying it for IAA

 

[Pedro Alexandre]

http://jokeforblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/bentley-mulsanne-convertible-leaked.html

 

[LaArtist]

^um is that real?

Looks real enough..and KICK ASS

 

[Centurion]

What is this, 1936? Why is the photo black and white? Are they trying to hide that it's a chop? The background looks suspicious.

 

[Monster]

Those photos must be taken from a prototype. Bentley has just announced they won't make this car after all. However I am still hoping Bentley to create a successor for the Brooklands.

CEO cites lack of demand

Bentley introduced a Mulsanne convertible concept at the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance and Bentley CEO Wolfgang Schreiber has just confirmed the model won't be headed into production.
In an interview with Car & Driver, Schreiber "We will not do that car" because "The demand for a Mulsanne convertible is just regional." As he explained, the company can't make a good business case for the model because it would only be successful in a handful of markets like the United States.
The news is disappointing but the magazine points out that Bentley only sold 1169Mulsannes last year, so the costs associated with creating a convertible variant might never be recouped. Indeed, the company will focus on creating a new crossover which should prove immensely more popular.

Source: Car & Driver

 

[Merc1]

WOW.....major letdown. Never would have expected that. Now the question is how many Phantoms does Rolls Royce sell a year? They should have built the car regardless the demand would be there. I bet this kills a coupe to replace the Brooklands also. WOW STUNNED.

M

 

[Monster]

WOW.....major letdown. Never would have expected that. Now the question is how many Phantoms does Rolls Royce sell a year? They should have built the car regardless the demand would be there. I bet this kills a coupe to replace the Brooklands also. WOW STUNNED.

M

Same, I always though the ultra rich will just buy whatever new Bentley and RR just because they can. Apparently the Chinese aren't a fan of convertibles in general, so that might be the main contributing issue.

 

[EnI]

They'll be offered a Bentley SUV instead.

 

[Deleted member 1071]

Bentley will also be concentrating on the successor of the current Continental GT line. Based on the VW-Groups' upcoming MSB matrix which it will share with Porsches' series II Panamera (intro sometime in 2015), the line will feature a new 4 door coupe derivative.

 

[Star&Car]

Same, I always though the ultra rich will just buy whatever new Bentley and RR just because they can. Apparently the Chinese aren't a fan of convertibles in general, so that might be the main contributing issue.

Driving a cabrio in the polluted air here? hell no..PM2.5 would kill you..we barely see blue sky in big cities such as Beijing,Shanghai,Guangzhou etc.

 

[SCOTT27]

Surprising , especially since the Phantom Drophead Coupe is popular in very hot climates of the world including the Middle East.

 

[HighestOfHigh]

Bentley has just announced they won't make this car after all.

Horrible news.....

 

[Monster]

Horrible news.....

How many TB of gifs do you have in your hdd?

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

WOW.....major letdown. Never would have expected that. Now the question is how many Phantoms does Rolls Royce sell a year? They should have built the car regardless the demand would be there. I bet this kills a coupe to replace the Brooklands also. WOW STUNNED.

M

Exactly. I thought Rolls and Bentley could sell whatever they built. Even if it were a shopping trolley.

Interesting that they cite lack of demand as the reason, especially since we now know we're going to have an S-class Cab in a couple of years. So cheer up HOH.

 

[EnI]

Interesting that they cite lack of demand as the reason, especially since we now know we're going to have an S-class Cab in a couple of years.

And Wraith-based Cabriolet is coming as well.
But I guess Bentley sees ultra-luxury SUV as more popular & profitable product to sell around the globe (in much higher
volumes than a cabrio). And I'm sure RR come up with a crossover / SAV sooner or later.

 

[HighestOfHigh]

Interesting that they cite lack of demand as the reason, especially since we now know we're going to have an S-class Cab in a couple of years. So cheer up HOH.

I love Mercedes-Benz! God knows I do, but it's nothing like a (BIG) Bentley Convertible/Coupe.

 

[Merc1]

Yeah I still can't get with this decision. Seems out of place considering Rolls has one that starts at like 480K. Hell just charge more for it, it would sell. So I guess we won't see a Brooklands replacement either then? Depressing. The Mulsanne won't stand a chance when they roll out the next Phantom if the Mully doesn't have the market presence of a full lineup like the Phantom does. Go to South Beach in Florida, Phantom Dropheads are up and own the strip all day/night long.

M

 

[Rainer271]

Bentley Mulsanne-Based Convertible Back in Development


After two years of on-again, off-again proposals, it looks like the convertible version of the Bentley Mulsanne is finally getting an official green light for production. Wolfgang Duerheimer had originally championed the drop-top Mulsanne before his successor Wolfgang Schreiber killed the car. Now with Duerheimer back in charge at Bentley, the project is a go.
Earlier this month at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Duerheimer told Automotive News that the Mulsanne convertible is “back on track.” Two years earlier at the same show, he had revealed the convertible to small number of potential customers where he announced that the car would indeed be built. Shortly after that announcement, the VW Group moved Duerheimer positions as Audi’s chief of research and development and coordinator for VW motorsports before putting him back at the helm of Bentley and Bugatti earlier this year.

In the interview with Automotive News, Duerheimer was quoted as saying, “when I returned, I was a bit irritated by the fact that no work had been done on this project in two years."

Such a car would give Bentley a perfect competitor to go against the Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead as well as the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Cabriolet, which is expected to debut in the near future. When it does come to fruition, the soft-top Mulsanne is expected to resurrect the Bentley Azure nameplate. Regardless of the name, there is still no word as to when this model will become a reality, but it will likely be several more years before high-rolling convertible buyers can lay down their money for a two-door, drop-top Mulsanne.

By the time this car does roll into the driveways of its extremely wealthy buyers, the Mulsanne will have likely received a significant performance increase to the 6.75-liter engine. Current power output is rated at 505 bhp (377 kW) but a report from last month indicated the engine could soon produce as much as 550 bhp (410 kW).

http://www.autoevolution.com/news/bentley-mulsanne-based-convertible-back-in-development-85747.html

 

[Merc1]

http://jokeforblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/bentley-mulsanne-convertible-leaked.html

Was this car ever confirmed to be real? If so this is exactly how it should be.

M