Bentley has released the first images of its most powerful vehicle yet: the Mulliner Batur. Only 18 will be made, however, and they’ve already all been reserved.
Unsurprisingly for Bentley, the Batur is a grand tourer at the premium end of the spectrum.
With its muscular looks created by design director Andreas Mindt and his team, the two-door coupe has design features that the brand says will ultimately be signature flourishes of the electric vehicles it plans to manufacture in the future, despite being petrol driven.
The Batur range will be the most powerful series of cars Bentley has ever produced, with each being fitted out with a 750-horsepower version of the 6-litre twin-turbocharged W12 engine that has been a brand benchmark for the past two decades.
Bentley says this powertrain has been developed so effectively over the years it now produces 40 per cent more power, with fuel economy up by a quarter.
And all that power will sit inside similarly advanced chassis, with air suspension, anti-roll control, and four-wheel steering and torque vectoring all in situ. In layman's terms, this means it’ll probably be comfortable and go round corners pretty rapidly.
It’ll also have what’s being referred to as a sports exhaust, so buyers won't want to forget to roll the window down when they're revving the engine.
The Batur succeeds the Bacalar, another limited-edition project.
The earlier model is recognised as the one that relaunched the concept of coachbuilding (which signifies cars built by hand) at Bentley. Both the Batur and Bacalar have been named after spectacular stretches of water, in Indonesia and Mexico respectively.
The first customers will get their Baturs around the middle of 2023. There is no firm word on how much the vehicles will cost, but commentators suggest sums nearing the $2 million mark.
Sporty Bentley Bentayga S storms into the Middle East — in pictures
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The Bentayga S's black-rimmed headlights. All photos: Bentley -
The new Bentayga S was inspired by customers after something distinctly agile. -
Looking good from above. -
Beachy Bentaya. -
A dear rear. -
The Bentayga S has new colour accents in the cabin. -
The rear spoiler is a prominent feature on the Bentayga S. -
The S insignia on the Alcantara seating. -
A sporty new exhaust pipe set-up is a feature of the new Bentayga S. -
The Bentayga's rear spoiler. -
The driver information set-up. -
The Bentayga S now has Bentley's Dynamic Ride system fitted as standard. -
Shining in the sun. -
The Bentayga S's new 22-inch wheels. -
Bentley calls the Bentayga S's new stylings "bold and contemporary". -
Getting some speed up. -
The new Bentayga S has a top speed of 290kph. -
The Bentley B on the wheels is forever horizontal. -
An increase in damping stiffens the chassis and gives drivers a more dynamic ride. -
0-100kph in 4.5 seconds? No problem. -
Dashboard detail. -
Some of the stylings on the Bentayga S remain old school. -
The S insignia. -
Stitching on the steering wheel.
