Bentley Opens its Crewe Headquarters to the Public with New Design Exhibition

If you're a petrol head and live in or are considering a trip to England, you may want to make plans to visit Bentley's headquarters in Crewe and check out a new design exhibition called "An Unbroken Line", which offers a rare glimpse inside the company's usually secret studios.

The exhibition follows the development of a Bentley from the first sketch right through to the final product, and includes drawings from the prototype phase of models such as the new Continental GT that are being shown to the public for the first time ever.

Furthermore, the exhibition also captures key moments of the company’s lineage with signature characteristics that define a Bentley to this day such as the positioning of the headlights, the use of inverted needles on the dashboard and the pronounced ‘powerlines’ that sweep down the flanks of the car.

Dirk van Braeckel, Bentley’s Director of Design and Styling, commented: “What I particularly like about the exhibition is the sheer number and variety of interesting objects we’ve been able to bring together for the very first time, it is quite a collection. It is also fascinating to see just how talented the early Bentley designers really were - the beauty of their concept sketches and sheer precision of their technical drawings still inspires my own team to this day.”

VIDEO: Bentley Continental Supersports' Run at Goodwood Hill Climb Course

Bentley's latest model, the Continental Supersports that utilizes an E85 capable 6.0-liter W12 engine producing 621HP, was one of the newest sports cars to participate at this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed (July 3-5). Behind the steering wheel of the Continental Supersports was former Le Mans racer and honorary "Bentley Boy" Derek Bell. Follow the jump to watch the Bell tackling the challenging 1.16-mile Goodwood hill-climb course in the fastest and most powerful car in Bentley's 90-year history.

2010 Grand Bentley to Debut at Pebble Beach in August - New Teaser Video

Bentley officially confirmed today that the successor to the Arnage limo will be revealed (and named) at the Pebble Beach Concours D' Elegance in Monterey, California, on August 16. The Crewe-based automaker that is celebrating its 90th anniversary today said that the new flagship model will signal "a new era in British luxury motoring". Even though Bentley remains secretive about its Rolls Royce Phantom rival, a series of photographs that were shot inside the factory gave us our first glimpse of the vehicles exterior design. You can see those photos here.

Car Magazine Bags 2010 Grand Bentley in the Flesh

For a moment there I had a 'grand' flashback that took me back to my junior years and my neighbor's "swanky" 1970s Ford LTD - that's the Australian market model which you can check out after the jump. In all fairness, I must say that Ford's Aussie limo shamelessly aped traditional Rolls Royce and Bentley styling cues. But anyway, back to today, the crew over at UK's Car Magazine somehow managed to photograph the Arnage's successor, currently referred to as the 'Grand Bentley', in production guise at Bentley's Crewe headquarters.

The photos reveal that the new Arnage (Bentley has yet to reveal the official name) will have a 'grand' front end dominated by a massive grille that's flanked by a pair of headlamps that are surrounded by small LEDs. There's also a cryptic photo of the rear end that suggests a more curvy design for the Grand Bentley's arse.

The VW Group owned automaker has not released any information on its Rolls Royce Phantom challenger, but it is said that the British firm's flagship limo will use a modified version of the Audi A8's spaceframe chassis as well as new range of engines that might include a Flex-Fuel variant capable of running on either petrol or E85 biofuel or any combination of the two.

The Arnage's successor is expected to be officially revealed later in the summer.

Via: Car

Grand Bentley Useless Teaser Video No4: Fusion of Extremes

Being in the auto biz, we're obliged to take a look at all official videos released by automakers even if we're almost certain that it's going to be a complete waste of our time. But that doesn't mean that you have to go through the ordeal of hearing that annoying piano-music for the fourth time on Bentley's latest teaser video for the Arnage replacement, so do yourself a favor and just ignore this post...

VeilSide 4509 GTR is a Toyota Supra IV with an Identity Crisis

Japanese tuners sure love breaking the mold and shocking people with their creations. Revealed at the Tokyo Auto Salon, the 4509 GTR is the product of VeilSide, a Japan-based tuning firm established in 1990 by Yokomaku Hironao. It is based on a fourth generation Toyota Supra Turbo from 1993 and has received a complete makeover with the exterior design borrowing styling elements from the Bentley Continental with a hint of an Audi R8 here and there.

The body parts are made out of carbon fiber and fiberglass, while the look is completed by the new black wheels sized 20-inches up front and 22-inches at the back. The alloys are wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza rubber, 255/30R20 at the front and 295/25R22 at the rear.

Inside, VeilSide's tune sees the addition of new sports seats upholstered in leather and diamond quilted alcantara, a sports steering wheel, modified instrument panel and more.

The 4509 GTR also benefits from a plethora of performance upgrades for the powertrain as well as the chassis. The Toyota Supra's twin-turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine gets an HKS turbo kit complete with an intercooler and a variety of other mods, which help boost output to an impressive 680-horses at 6,250 rpm and 745 Nm or 594.5 lb-ft of peak torque. A new racing clutch, custom sports exhaust system, braking system and sports suspension round off the package.

VeilSide 4509 GTR is a Toyota Supra IV with an Identity Crisis

Japanese tuners sure love breaking the mold and shocking people with their creations. Revealed at the Tokyo Auto Salon, the 4509 GTR is the product of VeilSide, a Japan-based tuning firm established in 1990 by Yokomaku Hironao. It is based on a fourth generation Toyota Supra Turbo from 1993 and has received a complete makeover with the exterior design borrowing styling elements from the Bentley Continental with a hint of an Audi R8 here and there.

The body parts are made out of carbon fiber and fiberglass, while the look is completed by the new black wheels sized 20-inches up front and 22-inches at the back. The alloys are wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza rubber, 255/30R20 at the front and 295/25R22 at the rear.

Inside, VeilSide's tune sees the addition of new sports seats upholstered in leather and diamond quilted alcantara, a sports steering wheel, modified instrument panel and more.

The 4509 GTR also benefits from a plethora of performance upgrades for the powertrain as well as the chassis. The Toyota Supra's twin-turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine gets an HKS turbo kit complete with an intercooler and a variety of other mods, which help boost output to an impressive 680-horses at 6,250 rpm and 745 Nm or 594.5 lb-ft of peak torque. A new racing clutch, custom sports exhaust system, braking system and sports suspension round off the package.