Very First Drive: 2009 Bentley Brooklands
Click above for high-res gallery of the 2009 Bentley BrooklandsAs the youngest of three brothers, I'm used to hand-me-downs. Hand-me down toys, hand-me-down clothes, and yes, even hand-me-down cars. Perhaps this explains when a vehicle arrives in the Autoblog Garage with over 8,000 journalist-driven miles on its odometer as most do, I don't mind. Though the scars of past judgments are often plain to see, we're happy enough to be reviewing these vehicles at all.Last Wednesday I stepped off a plane at...

Japanese tuner ASI announces Bentley GT range
Japanese tuning companies are increasingly looking outside their domestic brands to modify and the latest to join their ranks is ASI, who focuses purely on high-end Bentleys. Founder Satoshi Kondo has developed a program for the relatively popular Continental GT and its GTC and Flying Spur variants that comprises of interior, exterior, and power upgrades. Utilizing dry carbon in the bodywork, custom 22” wheels, and an aggressive bodykit, ASI has transformed the GT range from elegant to something...

Premier4509 widebody kit for Bentley Continental GT
Japanese tuner Premier4509 the premium arm of bodykit specialist Veilside has announced a limited edition widebody aero kit for the Bentley Continental GT that has been released alongside the previous Premier4509 Lamborghini Murcielago kit. The Bentley widebody set will be limited to just 100 kits worldwide and each kit comes with a numbered serial plate. The parts are handmade with a mix of carbon fiber and fiberglass, and include a new front bumper, a pair of side sills, a new rear bumper and pumped...

Bentley, and luxury cars generally, face life or death struggle
One headline made me do a double-take at the annual Geneva Car Show early in March. "Geneva 2008: Bentley to go 120 G/km by 2012" Let me try and explain some of that gobbledygook. "G/km" is short for grammes of carbon dioxide CO2 per kilometre. That's European shorthand for how much a car apparently threatens the climate with its emissions of CO2. This formula is simply a more opaque way of expressing a more familiar measurement of miles per gallon. After quickly consulting my conversion table I can...

Acid poured on athlete's Bentley Continental GT Speed
The British -- who certainly aren't alone -- have been said to have a thing against folks flaunting their top-of-the-food-chain status with things like yellow Ferraris. Jeremy Clarkson said buying a Ferrari would mean spending a lot of time scraping phlegm off of it. Well, we're not sure if the Scottish hate Bentleys -- we can't imagine so -- but someone there has a severe dislike for Rangers FC goalie Allan McGregor. And they took it out on his silver Bentley Continental GT Speed, pouring acid and...

Bentley rules out W16 and diesel engines
Click above to view in high resolution Bentley engines are some of the biggest, most powerful old-school units on the market, and that's not about to change. This, despite earlier reports that Crewe was considering utilizing diesel engines or even the powerplant from the Bugatti Veyron, which now appear off the table... in the short run at least. Although Bugatti and Bentley are now united under common leadership, Bugatti is rumored to be working on its own luxury limousine, so shoehorning its engine...

Rare time a Bentley will not stick out
Dear Tom and Ray: I am an older woman who has just taken a vice presidential position with a company that is virtually all male and, thus, I do not want to display my profound ignorance about cars. The company has said that it will provide me with a car to use, BUT it must be one that reflects the company's success and status. Translated, that means I have to choose something fancier than the 2000 Lexus I currently drive. I am, frankly, looking for comfort. I like leather seats, and I want roadside...

Bentley rules out diesel for now
With almost one out of every two cars sold in Europe powered by a diesel and demand steadily growing in North America, carmakers that previously would have never been associated with the oil-burners are now examining the possibility of adding the frugal powertrains to their lineups. Bentley is a carmaker rumored to be investigating the use of diesel engines but latest reports claim the ultra-luxury make has no plans for them in the near future. Last month, Bentley market director Adrian Hallmark told...

Swanky Sled: Bentley S3 E design concept
Click image for a high-res galleryThere's badass, there's relentlessly badass, and then there's this. This is what happens when you dream up an idea that combines a vintage Bentley S3's coachwork and chassis with a 300-horsepower BMW 4.4L V8, a ZF 5-speed auto, a custom dual exhaust, and a deluxe interior with all the modern amenities. Tweak the look to give it the feel of a late-model Bentley, add 20-inch forged wheels, slam it to the ground and you have Arturo Alonso's Bentley S3 E design concept...

Bentley Boys S3 design study
This ominous, retro-inspired design study is the creation of automotive engineer Arturo Alonso from Bentley Boys USA and is tipped to enter production if it receives enough interest. Alonso and his team are planning to build just three cars, each at a cost of $150,000, at a the painstaking slow rate of just one every eight months and plans to promote them to possible buyers in cities like Dubai, New York and Moscow. The car is styled after the original Bentley S3 from the 1960s and includes the same...