Overkill? Wald International's Bentley Continental Flying Black Bison

This time, Japan's Wald International has set its eyes on the Bentley Continental Flying Spur luxury sedan with the introduction of a Sports Line Black Bison styling package.

The makeover includes a new front bumper with added air vents and LED daytime running lights, side skirts, a revised rear bumper with -you-guessed it- air ducts and something that's supposed to resemble a diffuser, nifty quad-pipe exhaust and a rather subtle carbon fiber boot lid spoiler.

The package is completed by a set of trim spoilers on the front and rear side windows plus carbon fiber pieces on the B-columns, and Wald's own multispoke alloy wheels.

Via: Autoblog.nl

Classic Bentley Parts Bin on 8,000 Mile Journey Across the U.S.A.

Classic cars come with classic car problems. The sort of reliability we take for granted today was unheard of thirty years ago. Classic cars don't start in cold weather They overheat in hot weather. They leak brake fluid. Their wiper motors break. Bits of trim fall off them. Their clutches fail. Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

And it's not like you can take it down to your local mechanic and have them fixed. Parts are expensive or unavailable. In the days before eBay you had to go to swap meets and scrap yards in the hopes of finding the part you needed. It was Hell.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel though, at least for those who own a Bentley built between 1955 and 2002. To ease the burden on its U.S. aficionados, Bentley Motors is planning a road trip across the U.S.A., bringing with them over a thousand heritage parts and genuine accessories.

Dubbed the Bentley Heritage Roadshow, the idea is that Bentley owners will be able to get specialist and hard-to-find parts, as well as genuine accessories, direct from the original manufacturer. And if Bentley doesn't have the part you need on the day, then they can organize to have it shipped over from Crewe.

"Our task is to continue to provide these passionate owners and drivers with the service and parts they need." said Steve O'Hara, Director for After-Sales at Bentley.

Carrying everything from complete V8 engines to as-good-as-new owner manuals (still in their original packaging!), you're sure to find the right part for your Bentley.

The Roadshow starts its journey in California on September 16th, before passing through New Jersey, Maryland, North Carolina and Texas before finishing up in Florida on October 23rd. If you are a Bentley owner who would like to get his hands on some genuine parts, contact your local dealer for further details.

By Tristan Hankins

Bentley Opens its Crewe Headquarters to the Public with New Design Exhibition

If you're a petrol head and live in or are considering a trip to England, you may want to make plans to visit Bentley's headquarters in Crewe and check out a new design exhibition called "An Unbroken Line", which offers a rare glimpse inside the company's usually secret studios.

The exhibition follows the development of a Bentley from the first sketch right through to the final product, and includes drawings from the prototype phase of models such as the new Continental GT that are being shown to the public for the first time ever.

Furthermore, the exhibition also captures key moments of the company’s lineage with signature characteristics that define a Bentley to this day such as the positioning of the headlights, the use of inverted needles on the dashboard and the pronounced ‘powerlines’ that sweep down the flanks of the car.

Dirk van Braeckel, Bentley’s Director of Design and Styling, commented: “What I particularly like about the exhibition is the sheer number and variety of interesting objects we’ve been able to bring together for the very first time, it is quite a collection. It is also fascinating to see just how talented the early Bentley designers really were - the beauty of their concept sketches and sheer precision of their technical drawings still inspires my own team to this day.”

2010 Grand Bentley to Debut at Pebble Beach in August - New Teaser Video

Bentley officially confirmed today that the successor to the Arnage limo will be revealed (and named) at the Pebble Beach Concours D' Elegance in Monterey, California, on August 16. The Crewe-based automaker that is celebrating its 90th anniversary today said that the new flagship model will signal "a new era in British luxury motoring". Even though Bentley remains secretive about its Rolls Royce Phantom rival, a series of photographs that were shot inside the factory gave us our first glimpse of the vehicles exterior design. You can see those photos here.

Car Magazine Bags 2010 Grand Bentley in the Flesh

For a moment there I had a 'grand' flashback that took me back to my junior years and my neighbor's "swanky" 1970s Ford LTD - that's the Australian market model which you can check out after the jump. In all fairness, I must say that Ford's Aussie limo shamelessly aped traditional Rolls Royce and Bentley styling cues. But anyway, back to today, the crew over at UK's Car Magazine somehow managed to photograph the Arnage's successor, currently referred to as the 'Grand Bentley', in production guise at Bentley's Crewe headquarters.

The photos reveal that the new Arnage (Bentley has yet to reveal the official name) will have a 'grand' front end dominated by a massive grille that's flanked by a pair of headlamps that are surrounded by small LEDs. There's also a cryptic photo of the rear end that suggests a more curvy design for the Grand Bentley's arse.

The VW Group owned automaker has not released any information on its Rolls Royce Phantom challenger, but it is said that the British firm's flagship limo will use a modified version of the Audi A8's spaceframe chassis as well as new range of engines that might include a Flex-Fuel variant capable of running on either petrol or E85 biofuel or any combination of the two.

The Arnage's successor is expected to be officially revealed later in the summer.

Via: Car

Grand Bentley Useless Teaser Video No4: Fusion of Extremes

Being in the auto biz, we're obliged to take a look at all official videos released by automakers even if we're almost certain that it's going to be a complete waste of our time. But that doesn't mean that you have to go through the ordeal of hearing that annoying piano-music for the fourth time on Bentley's latest teaser video for the Arnage replacement, so do yourself a favor and just ignore this post...

New Grand Bentley: Teaser Image and Video of Arnage Replacement

After a little more than a decade, Bentley will replace its top-of-the-line Arnage with an all new model that is currently being called by the company 'new grand Bentley'. The British firm issued a rather cryptic teaser photo along with short video of the Arnage's successor ahead of the luxury sedan's official debut that's scheduled for late summer 2009. Aimed squarely at the Rolls Royce Phantom, the 'new grand Bentley' that will sit atop of the four-door Continental in the firm's sedan range, has been designed, engineered and (will be) built in Crewe, England.

Information is still scarce though there has been talk of a modified version of the Audi A8's spaceframe chassis as well as an updated range of engines that could very well include a Flex-Fuel variant capable of running on either petrol and E85 biofuel or any combination of the two, but all for now, all this is pure speculation. Stay tuned on Carscoop for more details.

A Chrysler Sebring-Based Bentley Replica that could Actually Pass for its Inspiration

Here’s a scary admission for you: I actually don’t mind the first generation Chrysler Sebring. It was sort of “Mustang-lite” in the styling department and is still a lot better looking than the latest incarnation of America’s middle-age spread, the almost universally despised third generation Sebring. And, as you no doubt know by now, here at Carscoop we love us some eBay-found Euro reskins of fifteen plus year old American cars.

Today’s entrant is this, dare I say it, rather convincing replica of a 2009 Bentley Continental GT convertible or GTC based on a ’96 Chrysler Sebring Convertible. Fashioned in ghetto / Saudi Arabian sheik white with the typical, so-not-a-Bentley blinger rims that’d make even Lil’ Jon a lil ill, our wanna-B (you see what I did there?) comes complete with 175,000 miles on the clock and a full fibreglass body.

Before it leaves the seller’s hands, he or she claims to be fitting new carpet, a new windscreen, new door mirrors and a custom dual exhaust with genuine Bentley tips. All the buyer needs to do, we are told, is reupholster the seats, install a Bentley dash and centre console and fit a new convertible top, a new sound system and a sat nav system. And et voilà, your very own Bentley - sort of.

You have to admit, US$21,100 (€16,302) isn’t half bad for something that looks this good. You could get a ’96 Sebring for a lot less, but who wants one of those? You certainly can’t pick up a second-hand Bentley for this sort of money, that’s for sure. So, what’s the verdict? Would you or wouldn’t you? Let us know in the comments.

Link: eBay

VeilSide 4509 GTR is a Toyota Supra IV with an Identity Crisis

Japanese tuners sure love breaking the mold and shocking people with their creations. Revealed at the Tokyo Auto Salon, the 4509 GTR is the product of VeilSide, a Japan-based tuning firm established in 1990 by Yokomaku Hironao. It is based on a fourth generation Toyota Supra Turbo from 1993 and has received a complete makeover with the exterior design borrowing styling elements from the Bentley Continental with a hint of an Audi R8 here and there.

The body parts are made out of carbon fiber and fiberglass, while the look is completed by the new black wheels sized 20-inches up front and 22-inches at the back. The alloys are wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza rubber, 255/30R20 at the front and 295/25R22 at the rear.

Inside, VeilSide's tune sees the addition of new sports seats upholstered in leather and diamond quilted alcantara, a sports steering wheel, modified instrument panel and more.

The 4509 GTR also benefits from a plethora of performance upgrades for the powertrain as well as the chassis. The Toyota Supra's twin-turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine gets an HKS turbo kit complete with an intercooler and a variety of other mods, which help boost output to an impressive 680-horses at 6,250 rpm and 745 Nm or 594.5 lb-ft of peak torque. A new racing clutch, custom sports exhaust system, braking system and sports suspension round off the package.