2012 Bentley Mulsanne Review
In W.O.'s image
I Say
83%
By Mathieu St-Pierre
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
Styling (92%)
Accessories (88%)
Space and Access (80%)
Comfort (92%)
Performance (75%)
Driving Dynamics (77%)
Safety (80%)
General Appreciation (90%)
Bentley. Say it again: Bentley. It is a fairly simple word, not the easiest to pronounce, and yet it carries a huge amount of clout. The 20th Century saw many a great automotive tycoon come and go and Walter Owen Bentley was one of the most revered. His legacy has never been stronger and truer.
Big is beautiful. The 2012 Bentley Mulsanne is all of 18.3 feet long and feels it. Driving requires all of the drivers' attention.
As you can read in my blog recounting my brief drive of a Continental Supersports, I'd never been a diehard fan of the brand, only the occasional gawker when an Arnage or Turbo R would glide by--no more than that, really. But as I stated, that has all changed now.
Further to my drive of the Mulsanne, Continental SS and GT, I became curious about the man that founded the brand back in 1919. In my brief reads, I discovered a person determined to bring the best out of the automobile of the time to the few and the privileged. The guy's life experience is captivating. It started off with locomotives, moved on to aeronautical and then he started Bentley Motors Limited. His career would take him to Rolls-Royce, Lagonda and later, Aston Martin. His story is a fascinating one, as is that of his road and racing cars.
I would recommend that anyone curious about the car business read up on the man and his work. I know I'll be doing more.
Doing so will help you understand the Mulsanne, the current top-of-line Bentley. The Mulsanne is everything the name sounds like it is. Like the word Bentley, it is a relatively uncomplicated word comprising of only two syllables, but when properly uttered it sounds elegant and expensive.
The Mulsanne is just that--and in strides. But that, you already knew just by looking at the car. It's massive, presumptuous, majestic, and a marvel to behold. This car makes no excuses for being what it is. In fact, it does quite the contrary with one of the longest hoods I've ever had to navigate through streets as opposed to canals. This bonnet serves as a private carport to the massive 6.75L twin-turbocharged V8. Unlike the rest of the car, it makes itself fairly invisible despite putting out 505 hp and 752 lb-ft of torque.
It does take a whack of power to make the stunning 21" wheels rotate. Believe me, each and every foot-pound of torque does well against the car's near 5,700-lb (2,585-kg) weight. The luxury liner will reach 100 km/h in a blink over 5 seconds and cruise all the way to a top speed of 296 km/h, but you'd never know it. And the 8-speed automatic transmission? What transmission?
It really is no wonder why the Queen chooses to cruise about London in a Bentley. The Mulsanne's ride is regal; there is no other word for it. The car is equipped with Drive Dynamics Control, which consists of four driver-selectable settings for the suspension's Continuous Damping Control and power steering. The available modes include Bentley, Sport, Comfort and Custom.
Everything you see here is real. That's real wood, leather and luxury. And yes, the seats are as comfortable as they look.
Regardless of the selection, the good-ship lollipop hovers above the tarmac with nigh a ruffled feather. Even in Sport, the Big Bentley prefers smooth navigating over harsh movements. To add peace to the quiet, all side windows are double-paned, ensuring complete isolation from outside noise pollution.
There are two ways to experience the Mulsanne. Mine would be as the driver. Here, the pilot need not be the Incredible Hulk; every input requires but a delicate touch and all is met with silky responses. The steering wheel is firmly connected to the front wheels, however harshness does not apply. Both the throttle and brake pedals are easy to modulate, as if you were cruising around in any basic Lexus. All the driver needs is a good sense of his or her surroundings.
Although this car is uber-powerful, an important degree of lag is present during throttle mashes. I'm not talking about turbo lag, I'm referring to the prominent delay that takes place when accelerating, particularly in a passing manoeuvre. It's as though the transmission's brain says: "Wait, what's this? WOT? Lemme think about it... Oh, now I get it!" And then gears drop, the front end lifts and the 5.6-metre-long (18.3-ft) car lunges forward. I'm thinking this is a built-in feature for comfort.
Comfort for the rear passengers, of course. I can't begin to describe how it feels to sit back there. What you see is what you get: supremely cozy, electric-power, multi-adjustable, hand-selected-leather-covered, massaging, heated, vented thrones. Why would anyone ever want to get up from these seats?
What you do miss out on when snoozing in the back is the stunning mixture and blending of wood veneers, leathers, stainless steel and the unique and special glass switchgear. The black buttons you see in the gallery are not plastic, they are clear glass and are sprung so perfectly and so smooth to the touch that they make a baby's butt seem rough. Everything onboard does feel as good as it looks.
The standard equipment list is laughably long. The expression "all the bells and whistles" finds new meaning in the Mulsanne. Essentially, the only item you can't get is the kitchen sink. For fun, when you order yours, ask the people in Crewe, England about getting one. I'm sure that, for the right price, they'll figure out how to make one fit. For more fun, take a glance at the options list and colour palette. The right word is: Insane.
From the rear, the 2012 Bentley Mulsanne is most similar to the Continental GT and Flying Spur. The taillights are what give it away.
On the subject of pricing, the Mulsanne ain't cheap and you know how it goes: "If you have to ask..." But since you haven't, I'll tell you. Base price for the 2012 Mulsanne is $360,000, without options. That's correct: Your current mortgaged house value in just about any respectable suburban town.
W.O. would be proud.
Thanks are in order to Decarie Motors, the kind purveyor of these dream cars.
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