BENTLEY'S MULSANNE HOPES IN MIDDLE EAST AND EGYPT

Ever since the era of the Bentley Boys, Bentley cars have been enjoying an amazing reputation in most parts of the world. That reputation consequently was reflected in the continuously increasing sales numbers worldwide, especially in key markets such as Europe, USA and the Far East. Unfortunately the Middle East in general, and Egypt in specific, have not been such promising markets until now.

In the Middle East in general it is mainly the modest public and media awareness which prohibits the Bentley brand from competing successfully with the other top-luxury brands in the region.

In Egypt it is mainly the Bentley importer, MTI, who is making every potential Bentley customer run away to the other luxury brands. MTI's reputation has been damaging every brand it represents, especially such brands as Ferrari. That is one reason why the Italian sports car manufacturer is seriously 'exploring other options' for its presence and representation in Egypt.

The fact that MTI does not even have a dedicated Bentley showroom in Cairo and the fact that it switches the cladding of its Mickey-Mouse showroom from a Jaguar-Land Rover branding to a Ferrari-Maserati branding whenever there is a Ferrari event or press conference in Cairo surely confirms to most potential Bentley customer the 'seriousness' and 'professionalism ' of this company.

The fact that most Ferrari-, Land Rover- and Jaguar-owners within Egypt's elite society and diplomatic corps complain about MTI's customer service and after-sales scares off any believers in this legendary British brand, which is owned by Europe's biggest and most renowned car manufacturer, the Volkswagen Group.

Other luxury car manufacturer in are taking the exclusive existing and future customer of their luxury car far more serious, especially since the Forbes Top 100 includes a lot of business men and families from Egypt.

Rolls Royce for example was not happy with existing Rolls Royce dealer in Egypt, the Bavarian Auto Group which also represents BMW and MINI, and decided recently to cancel the dealership agreement with them. Aston Martin is currently also looking for its new and first dealership in Egypt.

I believe it is about time that Bentley does a thorough examination of its current dealer-ship networks in the Middle East and North Africa, and adjust and change its dealerships where necessary. I am sure the Egyptian Bentley dealership would be the first to be changed. That would surely help increasing the hardly existing Bentley shares in the Egyptian market and also improve the image of Bentley among the wealthy Arab tourists who flood into Egypt during the summer time, as well as increase the public and media awareness of the new Bentley Mulsanne.

Talking about the Bentley Mulsanne, this car has surely all the potential to start a totally new era for Bentley in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Bentley Motors Chairman and Chief Executive, Dr. Franz-Josef Paefgen recently said that “The new Mulsanne is a thoroughly modern flagship that captures the essence of the Bentley marque. It is elegant yet distinctly sporting in character, delivering effortless performance while within its sumptuous cabin, advanced technology sits discreetly with handcrafted luxury.�

The new Mulsanne, designed and engineered at Crewe from the ground-up, reaffirms the marque’s intent to create a new flagship Bentley with refined performance, unparalleled levels of interior luxury and coach building skills to the fore.

The return of the Mulsanne name underlines Bentley’s sporting heritage and passion for power and speed. Nothing reflects that prowess better than the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours race. Bentley has enjoyed success on six occasions at Le Mans, where its powerful and reliable race cars have thundered down the long straight into the famous Mulsanne corner, from which the new model takes its name.

Unfortunately there had been hardly any media coverage about the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours race in the Middle Eastern TV or print media, this is why Bentley needs to work a lot on increasing the awareness of this legendary race which would surely be for the benefit of the Bentley cars as well.

The design of the new Mulsanne is a unique fusion of sportiness, coachbuilt elegance and solidity. Echoing the Bentley S -Type of the 1950s, the Mulsanne features a bold frontal design dominated by the traditional Bentley matrix grille and highly prominent, classic round inner headlamps with chrome surrounds, flanked by two, smaller outboard lamp clusters, all featuring the latest in lighting technology. The iconic �Flying B’ retractable radiator mascot is available as an option.

The long bonnet, short front overhang and long rear overhang help to convey a sense of power and movement, reinforced by muscular haunches and sharply sculptured lines which flow gracefully from the front wings to the rear. Uniquely designed 20-inch (and optional 21-inch) wheels reinforce the Mulsanne’s powerful, sporting stance.

The body is produced in a new manufacturing facility at Bentley’s headquarters in Crewe where traditional metalworking skills, developed over six decades, are still used extensively during the nine-week build process. It is the very opposite of volume-production car-building… but the very epitome of Bentley.

The rear screen, for example is fully enveloped by the coachwork. This provides a flowing, flawless line to the rear of the car, complementing the exquisitely formed D-pillars – whose complex curves can only be created by skilled coach-builders. The complex form of the aluminium front wings, impossible to achieve with normal pressing techniques, is created using superforming, a technology usually reserved for the aerospace industry. This also makes the wings lighter, stiffer and provides superb surface definition. New construction techniques meant the designers could also incorporate details such as the �floating’ elliptical LED tail lights, which uniquely echo the shape of the exhaust tailpipes.

To accentuate the beauty of the bodywork, the Mulsanne features �brightware’ exclusively in polished stainless steel, including sill treadplates and matrix grilles. Bentley is the only manufacturer in the world to do this.

The door handles incorporate the traditional Bentley �knurling’ to their inboard surface for enhanced grip, reflecting the company’s typical attention to detail, while .the sporting character of the Mulsanne is reinforced by front wing vents and wide oval tailpipe finishers.

Bentley customers have a world of infinite choice when commissioning their cars. There are over 100 paint colours in the range that include everything from unusual heritage colours, special satin and pearlescent finishes and duo-tone combinations. But the choice does not end there. Through the bespoke world of Bentley Mulliner, unique colours can exactly match a customer’s vision and taste.

The latest in-car technologies are discreetly placed within the Mulsanne’s sumptuous interior. A multimedia system with 60GB hard disc drives satellite navigation, audio/video, personal data, telephone and Bluetooth?® connectivity. The upper dashboard houses an 8-inch multimedia screen, positioned unobtrusively behind an electrically operated veneered door, while below sits a stylish, leather-lined media player stowage drawer with connectors for iPod, USB, Mini USB and 3.5mm aux.

A state-of-the-art 14-speaker audio system with Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and 6-CD autochanger is provided as standard while the Naim for Bentley premium audio system may be specified as an option. This forging of two British luxury brands provides customers with the world’s most powerful production in-car amplifier with 2200 Watts, eight dedicated DSP modes and 20 custom-made speakers, delivering an unparalleled sound quality.

A personalised keyless entry system allows multiple pre-programmed configurations and automatically sets radio stations, phone book, seat (including ventilation and massage modes, both front and rear), steering column and seatbelt settings and even the electrically operated rear-seat blinds for side and rear windows. The keyless system operates with the chrome door handles which incorporate touch points to initiate communication with the key for verification and entry. The Mulsanne also features keyless start, having a stop/start button on the centre console.

The Bentley interior design team has continued to develop and evolve the luxurious interiors for which their cars are renowned, based on a large-scale, research programme to identify the classic signature features that have defined Bentleys from the 1920s to the present day.

Armed with this invaluable resource, the Mulsanne’s design team set itself highly challenging targets for key interior characteristics such as material design, smell, colour harmony and handcrafting. Similar targets were set for the operational refinement and robustness of all control mechanisms. The result is a hand-crafted interior that fully reflects traditional Bentley values, executed to the highest possible standards.

The use of wood and leather hides has increased significantly to create an even more refined and luxurious cabin. While classic design features such as bulls-eye air vents (now also fitted in the rear compartment), high-quality mirror-matched wood veneers, leather hides and hand-finished stainless steel are retained, they are mixed with new touches such as beautiful �glass’ switches.

The entire cabin is encased within a �ring of wood’ waistrail with an unbroken panel of wood gracing the Mulsanne’s dashboard. Inverted dial needles within the instrument cluster are evocative of early Bentleys while the entire dashboard and console design is a subtle reminder of the Bentley wings motif.

Customers may select from an extensive range of premium quality veneers, unbleached for a natural appearance, and two marquetry options: picture frame and contemporary crossbanding. True to the Bentley ethos, customers may also select from a virtually unlimited palette of leather hides, including 24 �standard’ colours, of which three are new for Bentley. This unrivaled choice of veneers, leather hides and paint colours ensures that the needs of all customers can be matched perfectly.

Following detailed customer feedback, a traditional tanning process has been re-instated to match the rich, worn leather smell that is so evocative of vintage Bentleys. Only a very few hide suppliers worldwide have the capability to do this.

The carpet of the Mulsanne is unique to Bentley, its increased fibre depth, density and feel enhancing cabin quality. It is available in a range of colours to complement each individual hide. Pure wool, deep pile Wilton-weave over mats can add a further touch of comfort and luxury.

These exquisite materials are fashioned by craftsmen and women with up to 40 years’ experience. Each steering wheel, for example, can take 15 hours to hand-stitch while stainless steel brightware gleams so perfectly thanks to an intensive 10-hour finishing process. A wood veneer takes five weeks to turn from a rough root ball into a full set of mirror-matched, fine-polished leaves.


The Bentley powertrain engineers were set three objectives for the Mulsanne:
1) To produce the effortless torque from extremely low revs that customers expect of a grand Bentley
2) To maintain the highest levels of refinement
3) To satisfy strict current and future environmental standards through improved engine efficiency

While other powertrain configurations were considered early on in the project, it soon became clear that these targets could best be achieved with a totally revised version of the 6?¾-litre V8 engine – the very configuration that had been used so successfully in the past. However for the new Mulsanne, all the major building blocks of the engine would be comprehensively re-engineered to integrate the very latest technologies.

Dr Ulrich Eichhorn, Bentley Motors’ Director of Engineering, explains the reasons behind the Mulsanne’s V8:
“Using our V8 guaranteed the immense power at low revs and unstressed performance that are the hallmarks of a flagship Bentley. But we also set our engineers the challenge of maintaining high levels of refinement at any speed and, equally important, improving efficiency.�

To achieve a significant reduction in fuel consumption and CO2. emissions, the Mulsanne V8 sees the introduction of two new control systems: cam phasing and, a first for the ultra-luxury sector, variable displacement.

The pioneering use of these two technologies in combination allows the Mulsanne’s engine management system not only to adjust the V8’s breathing for improved engine idle quality and torque delivery, but also to close the valves of four of the eight cylinders for maximum fuel economy when cruising.

New lightweight componentry including pistons, connecting rods and forged crankshaft reduce reciprocating mass and internal friction for improved engine response.

In the new Mulsanne, the 6?¾-litre V8 develops 512 PS (505 bhp/377 kW) while the massive torque (1020 Nm / 752 lb ft) is now delivered even earlier at 1750 rev/min. This dramatic improvement in torque delivery from just above idle and right across the rev range ensures that with a mere tap of the accelerator the driver is immediately rewarded with that characteristic deep, muffled V8 burble and phenomenal acceleration.

These new technologies are complemented by the new eight-speed automatic transmission which, for the first time on a flagship Bentley, comes with steering-wheel mounted paddleshift.

Overall, CO2 emissions and fuel consumption are reduced by more than 15 percent, in line with Bentley’s environmental commitment. An important unique selling point for European, American and environmentally conscious customers worldwide. Unfortunately not so for most of the customers in the Middle East region. At least not yet.

Prodigious power and torque are complemented by an all-new chassis, unique to the new Mulsanne. Both lighter and stiffer than previous flagship Bentleys, the new chassis benefits both ride and handling.

A new Drive Dynamics Control system, operated by a rotary switch mounted next to the gearshift selector, can be used to choose from three standard modes – Bentley, Sport and Comfort – offering precise calibration of suspension and steering control systems.

A fourth mode, �Custom’, allows the driver to select bespoke settings via the multimedia system to �tune’ the Mulsanne to a preferred driving style.

A new air suspension system with Continuous Damping Control (CDC) creates an even more refined and comfortable ride at lower speeds, yet can reduce the Mulsanne’s ride height automatically at high speeds to reduce lift and improve aerodynamic stability. With 20-inch alloy wheels and 265/45 ZR 20 tyres as standard, dynamic handling is assured. Customers may also opt for 21-inch wheels, available in two styles, fitted with 265/40 ZR 21 tyres.

Bentley Motors Chairman and Chief Executive Dr. Franz-Josef Paefgen says that “No other car maker can offer such a blend of performance and refinement in a single vehicle. The new Mulsanne is a car that evokes the Bentley philosophy of building the best luxury grand tourers in the world.�

Well, Dr. Paefgen is surely right that Bentley's philosophy is building the best luxury grand tourers in the world. But you should keep an eye on Rolls Royce, Aston Martin and Porsche as they have already started working relentlessly on this very important and lucrative segment in the Middle East and Egypt.

MS