Test drive Bentley Mulsanne
On the Unlimited Autobahn, the Mulsanne transforms into a large piston bomber. The speed is not felt, and only when you have to brake in front of Renault that fell into the left lane, do you understand how high you climbed
The stiff collar of Jörg Woltmann's shirt is fastened even tighter with a gold pin. He leans over his entire body to see where the porcelain insert on the updated Mulsanne will go. Woltmann bought and actually saved the legendary Royal Porcelain Manufactory (KPM) in Berlin. Just like VW once gave new life to the Bentley brand.
"Made forever" - under this motto, KPM, founded in the 1930th century, produces porcelain. Ten years ago, the banker Woltmann bought out the unprofitable enterprise and invested in its reconstruction. The historic building where the porcelain was fired houses a shopping gallery, but the share of manual labor in production is still high. In workshops, entwined with room greenery, they still paint classical landscapes on huge vases. And if they depict cars, then from the XNUMXs. Modern collections are not striking. In the showcases, dishes with gold and monograms are adjacent to the angular Bauhaus, graceful figures of Chinese women - with busts of Emperor Frederick II. The latter, they say, loved porcelain in a purely male community.
KPM has become profitable with the new owners, but Herr Woltmann considers his porcelain business to be something of a hobby. Of course, a person who preserves and fosters the past with such love cannot but love Bentley. He has a whole collection of British cars, including the Brooklands, the predecessor to the new Mulsanne with Bentley's iconic 8-liter V6,75. However, Jörg is also studying the new flagship with interest, especially the newest elongated version, in the back seat of which an unbending man with a golden pin sits down without difficulty. And he immediately begins to discuss with Bentley Product Manager Hans Holzgartner, where to attach the porcelain parts. This conversation is pure improvisation, but KPM has already participated in the creation of a special version of the Bugatti Veyron. At L'Or Blanc, even the wheel caps and the gas tank cap are made of porcelain.
For his personal Bentley Bentayga, Woltmann ordered porcelain trim, but details have not yet been established - the car is used daily. It's funny that the outside of the black SUV is adorned with a massive carbon fiber body kit, more befitting a car of a rapper, boxer or some other lover of smashing dishes.
The interior of Mulsanne is trimmed with carbon fiber in the fastest version of Speed with acceleration of less than five seconds to "hundreds". The checkered panels do not really fit in with the pompous appearance of the updated sedan. The fine-meshed sports radiator grille is densely shaded with vertical bars. It spread not only horizontally, but also vertically - due to the lower air intake, which also received chrome shading. Hans Holzgartner hastens to assure that this is by no means an imitation of Rolls-Royce, but the style of the old Bentleys.
However, once the cars of these two firms were direct relatives. Now BMW's Rolls-Royce and Volkswagen's Bentley have only one thing in common - retro design. Moreover, in the case of the Mulsanne, it was elevated to an absolute: the sedan entirely consists of "family" features. Take, for example, the barely noticeable wave on the shoulder line - it marks the junction of the front and rear fenders like on cars from the 1950s, puffed up, stiff and round-eyed. In a sedan with an elongated body - this option was added during the update - the rear wing was made more convex, and its joint with the front one forms a clearly visible tick. This again reminds us of the times when bodies for one Bentley model were ordered from different ateliers and sometimes they were quite different. In honor of one of these bodybuilders - Mulliner - a special equipment with diamond-shaped stitching on the leather is named.
At the same time, the designers tried to make the car wider than it really is. To do this, the small outer headlights were placed in line with the large ones. At the same time, "Expression" became less sad, some clients were unhappy with this. I wonder how they will react to the numerous initials? The letter B is inscribed in the air intakes on the bumper and front fenders, it shines in the headlights. The fact that we have a Bentley in front of us is clear even without prompts. For those reading in Cyrillic, it is rather B - the letter with which the words begin impressive, majestic, impressive. And they all apply to the Mulsanne.
The atmosphere of the past has been recreated with museum care in the salon - high massive seats, dial gauges, air ducts with retractable airflow adjustment knobs. It’s even strange that there is no fireplace, library, porcelain vases and deer head. Chrome, leather, wood, wood and more wood. The lacquered details impress not only with their “lively” texture, but also with their thickness. The tables for the rear passengers are even made too soundly - and rather resemble folding seats in a theater. It's a pity, impractical - things slide off the lacquered surface easily.
However, even a castle as impregnable as the Mulsanne cannot withstand the onslaught of modern technology. The multimedia screen is now on display, rather than hiding bashfully under a lacquered wood lid. It is small, only 8 inches, but the filling of the infotainment system is the most modern, like on the new Porsche Panamera. In front of the rear passengers are Android tablets enclosed in heavy metal cases. Passengers Mulsanne EWB, who reach far to touch the screen, can remove them, or pick up on the individual touchpad. Modern technologies are also here with a touch of retro - the touchpads are charged with a cable with a connector of an almost forgotten mini-USB format. And they are stored in the same place as the branded glasses - between the seat backs.
The Mulsanne EWB is still inferior in length and wheelbase to the elongated Rolls-Royce Phantom, but Bentley says the length lag is minimal by their own measurements. Either way, the extra 250mm Mulsanne EWB allows you to recline and extend your legs on a retractable ottoman. Turn on the back massage and look at the ceiling - more precisely, through it.
“There are quite a few large developers among Mulsanne owners and they are pleased to see their buildings floating over the car,” Hans Holzgartner explained why the hatch of the elongated car was moved in favor of the rear passengers.
Black curtains completely cover the side and rear windows and create the effect of a theater curtain. This option should be appreciated by the heroes of Stoker, Pelevin and Jarmusch, who are forced to hide behind a drapery during the day. At night, the unnaturally pale driver will nod to his porcelain girlfriend at the building floating in the moonlight: “Look left, this is a Packard factory. Once upon a time, the finest cars in the world were made here. "
Bentley Mulsanne - from the era of cars with sonorous names and multi-liter engines, but while they shine with polished sides in museums and private collections, the British sedan continues to roll off the assembly line.
Its low-speed rod-operated bottom-shaft motor is a direct heir to the classic "eights" that were installed in Bentley back in the 1960s. Such engines were left only to the Americans. The chassis, with an upright gas tank behind the rear seats, has its roots in the Arnage of the late 1990s. Naturally, VW engineers gave all this a second life - the engine, for example, was driven into strict environmental standards - it knows how to change the valve timing and turn off half of the cylinders. The chassis of the updated car has been slightly upgraded to reduce vibration.
Bentley says the Mulsanne is not just a passenger car, but a driver as well. From the comfortable back seat forward you change seats with slight anxiety: the elongated sedan is too huge. On the streets of Berlin crowded with cars, it looks like an ocean yacht and a cramped marina - one just wants to hang its sides with fenders. Inaudibly rustles with four cylinders and gently sways on pneumatic struts. Indeed a yacht. You quickly get used to its dimensions and soon you already feel like a sea wolf.
However, on the highway you are already an express train driver. The engine discreetly turns into an eight-cylinder and, thanks to two turbines, develops incredible torque from the bottom. It's time to switch to B mode here - this is the genetic program of the British brand, the same for all models, be it Mulsanne, Bentayga or Continental GT. To the extent of the stiffness of the suspension, to the extent of traction.
On the Unlimited Autobahn, the Mulsanne roars into a large piston bomber, and by 200 km / h gets into a turbulence zone. Sport mode allows you to climb up to 240 km / h, and the Speed version is comfortable even at higher speeds. The speed is almost not felt, and only when you have to urgently brake in front of Renault that has fallen into the left lane, do you understand how high you have climbed.
A sedan weighing under three tons first squeaks with tires, then the electronics catch on. This pause hints to the driver that the Bentley should not be twitching. However, the brakes don't get tired on winding country highways and it's a real pleasure to drive fast. In corners, the rear-wheel drive Mulsanne occasionally squeaks with tires, but remains in check and the stability control does little to intervene.
Dunlop tires are almost inaudible thanks to the special foam inside them. The Bentayga rides much louder on tough sports tires. At the same time, the pulse of the road is felt in the Mulsanne's cabin, running through the steering wheel. This makes the character of the car not only a little more sporty, but also analogous, without the admixture of newfangled electronics. And what a voice the motor has! It's like listening to David Gillmore on vinyl.
If the Bentayga, with its ground clearance, diesel and huge multimedia screen, is at the forefront of progress, the Mulsanne is at the opposite pole. It is the keeper of the brand's traditions. You don't have to be a century-old Dracula to appreciate its unique character, accustomed to unsynchronized gearboxes, leaf springs, and horsehair sofas.
Buying such a car is akin to collecting porcelain or audiophiles. The Mulsanne is priced at least $ 277, but those who prefer vinyl to digital spend an incredible amount of money on tube amps, tonearms and phono stages. It is a pity that the last song of the V700 engine has been sung: it will not fit into the new environmental standards, so it will no longer be on the next flagship.
| Body type | Sedan | Sedan |
| Dimensions: length / width / height, mm | 5575 / 2208 / 1521 | 5825 / 2208 / 1541 |
| Wheelbase, mm | 3266 | 3516 |
| Ground clearance, mm | No data | No data |
| Cargo space, l | 443 | 443 |
| Curb weight, kg | 2685 | 2730 |
| Gross vehicle weight, kg | 3200 | 3200 |
| engine's type | Petrol V8 turbocharged | Petrol V8 turbocharged |
| Working volume, cubic meters cm. | 6752 | 6752 |
| Max. power, h.p. (at rpm) | 537 / 4000 | 512 / 4000 |
| Max. cool. moment, Nm (at rpm) | 1100 / 1750 | 1020 / 1750 |
| Drive type, transmission | Rear, AKP8 | Rear, AKP8 |
| Max. speed km / h | 305 | 296 |
| Acceleration from 0 to 100 km / h, s | 4,9 | 5,5 |
| Fuel consumption, l / 100 km | 15 | 15 |
| Price from, USD | 303 500 | 326 800 |
