2011 Bentley Continental Gt 2dr Conv on 2040-cars

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And the first Bentley Bentayga goes to... Queen Elizabeth II

The Bentley Bentayga aims to be a lot of things to a select few people. But as the world's fastest, most powerful, and (arguably) most luxurious SUV on the market, it could all boil down to bragging rights for some. So who will get to enjoy the privilege of receiving the very first one? Probably the one person in the world who needs to brag the least: Queen Elizabeth II. The sovereign monarch of the United Kingdom (and more current and former commonwealth countries than we care to count) already rides around in a Bentley State Limousine specially made for the purpose and based on the old Arnage. But she'll now be adding a new Bentayga to her royal motorpool, using it specifically to go hunting at one of her estates in Scotland. She does, after all, own several in the country – including the official Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh and (more likely) her private Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire. Wherever she chooses to drive it, that's got to hurt for Jaguar Land Rover. The rival British automaker has been supplying the royal family with Range Rovers for years. Then again, both companies – alongside Aston Martin and Vauxhall – all hold royal warrants for supplying goods to Her Majesty. Given how many vehicles the royal family must own (and how the Queen has been known to drive herself about), we're sure there's room for all of Britain's finest. Watch Bentley's American CEO Michael Winkler discuss the Bentayga with a spitting image of Rob Cordry in the video above from Bloomberg. Related Video:

Bentley announces its fifth model will debut May 10

Bentley announced it would debut "a fifth model" on Tuesday, May 10 to join the Continental GT, Continental GTC, Flying Speed and Bentayga. The notice included all kinds of wordplay suggesting extra length and roominess, Crewe members having "gone to new lengths" on the "long-awaited" vehicle that will bring "an extra dimension of on-board wellness," and so on. We can't be certain of what's coming, but we're willing to place a large wager that it's the extended-wheelbase Bentayga. A prototype of the stretched family conveyance with an enlarged wheelbase and grandiose rear doors was caught testing at various points throughout 2021. And the door card in the teaser vid matches that of the Bentayga, not that of the only other four-door Bentley makes, the Flying Spur. Step inside. 12:30 BST, 10.5.2022 pic.twitter.com/4H7YENbtTz — Bentley Motors (@BentleyMotors) April 29, 2022 We don't know how much additional knee space Bentley will grant to back-seat VIP types; were this another era, we're sure Bentley would never quantify it beyond "more ample." We'll find out on May 10. There could be other changes in store for the variant as well, the automaker promising "a breadth of capabilities beyond anything previously offered." If the teaser is correct, there's a nifty shade of purple on the way, too. Related video:

Bentley Continental GT celebrates 20 years in production with one-off

Another automotive birthday this year: The Bentley Continental GT is getting a cake for being 20 years in production. The superluxe GT segment was neither new nor unpopulated when a Cypress Green Continental GT with VIN 20001 came off the production line in Crewe, England, in December 2003. It's just that nothing else combined as much speed, handling, and all-out luxury as the Bentley. That coupe also introduced the world to a 6.0-liter W12 engine making 550 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque back when the four-seat Ferrari 456M was getting 442 hp and 406 lb-ft. from its V12 and the two-seat Ferrari 575M was making "just" 508 hp and 434 lb-ft. from the same engine. With the 20th anniversary being celebrated with China dishware, it's fitting that Bentley used Auto Shanghai to introduce a one-off celebration in the form of a Continental GT S. This one comes in Magnetic Dark Grey Metallic over 22-inch black chrome and black wheels. Red accent lines embellish the mirror caps and form a hem around the base of the coupe. Inside, specialty division Mulliner's made a unique arrangement of Beluga (black) and Hotspur (red) leather against piano black trim. The bi-finish fascia puts Granite Stone above Grand Black veneer, separated by red pinstriping. Special badging and laser etching appears in places like the treadplates, center console, and veneers.  The carmaker plans events in the Western hemisphere at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July, a global relay of Continental GTs crossing three continents to pass a custom Bentley baton. There will also be drive hubs at the HQ in Crewe and in Geneva, Switzerland where invited guests can drive all three Continental generations, the first- and second-generation examples coming from the Bentley Heritage Collection. The culmination comes in another one-off Continental GT inspired by the first unit produced that will debut during Monterey Car Week.