Flying Spur*diamond Black/porpoise/beluga Hides*rear Exec Seating*we Finance*fla on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Bentley Bentayga V8 Design Series embraces the darkness

It is a truism that designers love the color black, and the hue features prominently in the Bentley Bentayga V8 Design Series. Outside, the Design Series comes standard with the Bentayga's optional Blackline package, which includes black trim, black exhaust outlets, and a body-color lower front fascia. The Design Series also gets a special set of seven-spoke Paragon alloy wheels in dark gray. In a trick seen also on — ahem — Rolls-Royce, the wheels feature self-leveling center badges, which means the "B" is never at an incorrect angle. Designers hate that. While the exterior is offered in colors other than black, the interior comes exclusively in black (Bentley's "Beluga"), but with a contrasting accent color — red, orange, white, or blue — that runs across the dash and on the sides of the center console. It is also seen in the seat leather perforations and in the binding of the deep-pile floor mats. Carbon-fiber trim on the dashboard and door panels has a special diamond-weave pattern, while gloss-black center console trim provides still more blackness. A Breitling clock in the dash is not black — it has a mother-of-pearl face. Other included goodies are "Comfort" seats, door sills with an illuminated "Bentley" treadplate, and drilled-alloy pedals. The Design Series is exclusive to the eight-cylinder Bentayga, which is powered by a 542-hp V8. We'd say that buyers of the 12-cylinder model or the Bentayga Hybrid are out of luck but they can probably lean on Bentley's Mulliner in-house customizing operation to approximate something close. But then, if you're going the full Mulliner route, why not get a little more imaginative? Maybe with something like the Bentayga for falconry or this paean to fly fishing? Just be sure to spec those self-leveling wheels — after all, one's B should always be upright.

U.S. issues new tariff threat, this time against British-built cars

WASHINGTON — Britain is the United States' closest ally but their long friendship may be sorely tested as the two countries try to forge a new trade agreement after Britain's exit from the European Union. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Saturday in London that he was optimistic that a bilateral deal with Britain could be reached as soon as this year. But Mnuchin gave up no ground after a second meeting with his UK counterpart, Sajid Javid. Javid has insisted that Britain will proceed with a unilateral digital services tax, despite a U.S. threat to levy retaliatory tariffs on British-made autos. Mnuchin told reporters after Saturday's meeting that such taxes would discriminate against big U.S. tech companies like Alphabet Inc's Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon. The UK Treasury declined to comment on the private meeting. The divide highlights the challenges ahead as the Trump administration seeks a new bilateral agreement with Britain, part of a broader push to rebalance relations with nearly all its major trading partners. The stakes are high — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pegged the trade deal with United States as a way to ease the pain of breaking with Europe, Britain's largest trade partner. U.S. President Donald Trump, has promised a "massive" trade deal to support Brexit, the product of a populist movement similar to his "America First" agenda. The goodwill and special relationship the two countries have enjoyed for decades may not count for much, experts say. "Trump is not going to be doing Johnson any favors," said Amanda Sloat, a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution in Washington. "He's not going to give him a trade deal without major concessions." Even before the digital tax issue arose, the Trump administration threatened to tax foreign car imports, which could hit British-made Jaguar, Land Rover, Mini, and Honda Civic hatchback cars. Stiff U.S. trade demands include increased access for U.S. farm goods, concessions that will be difficult for Britain's entrenched natural food culture to swallow. The United States also wants Britain to change the way its National Health Service prices drugs and allow in more U.S. pharmaceuticals, which could prove politically unpopular for Johnson's government. Washington's demand that London block Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd for national security reasons could also cloud talks.

Watch VW Group Night kick off the Frankfurt festivities

The Frankfurt Motor Show is Volkswagen's home affair. As a result, the whole of the automaker group makes a big splash, even before the show doors open. We'll be live from the Frankfurt floor starting early tomorrow morning, but tonight we're posted up in the stands at the always-entertaining Volkswagen Group Night. To give you a taste of what it's like to be there, we're going to be shooting some man-on-the-scenes video as the night progresses. Below you'll find videos of all the best that VW Group brands – Audi, Lamborghini, VW, the lot – have to offer, as quick as we can upload them. So, enjoy the Short Cut Videos you see here. And stay tuned as we add more to the tally, below. And, of course, be sure to check in on Autoblog early and often tomorrow, when we bring you official debuts of new production vehicles and concept cars, a ton of new video content, live image galleries, and lots more.Seat Leon Cross Sport Bentley Bentayga Lamborghini Huracan LP 610-4 Spyder Volkswagen Multivan PanAmerican Edition Bugatti Vision Gran Turismo Concept Audi E-Tron Quattro Concept Audi A4 Ducati Monster 1200 R Volkswagen Tiguan Skoda Superb Combi Porsche 911 Carrera S Coupe and Cabrio Volkswagen Tiguan GTE Porsche Mission E Concept Volkswagen Group Night Finale Green Frankfurt Motor Show Audi Bentley Bugatti Lamborghini Volkswagen SEAT Skoda Videos Original Video Frankfurt 2015