Bentley formed its Mulliner division a few years back as a response to increased demand for highly personalized vehicles. Since then, the brand's "anything you wish" division has come up with some incredible and bespoke Bentleys. Ever keen on showing that Mulliner really is a simile for "anything you want," the company from Crewe has unveiled a new Bentley Bentayga at The Quail, during this year's Monterey Car Week.
In the brand's own words, the Bentayga EWB (that's the long-wheelbase Bentayga) Mulliner Gallery transforms the car into "an art gallery on wheels." It's not evident on the outside, but once you step into this Bentayga, it's very evident what Bentley means.
Usually, the upper trim panels of the brand's SUV are covered in billion-year-old wood found only in one place on Earth, harvested by a licensed Bentley Craftsman (TM) and professionally installed by elves. Instead, you'll find artwork of some of Bentley's most iconic new models, and some old ones as well.
Four different cars are featured, placed over the car's wood veneer by airbrush artist Piers Dowell and protege Lewis Warby. Four cars in total cover the interior of the luxury SUV, including Bentley's restoration of the 1939 MkV Corniche. The others are of the Blower Continuation, the recently revealed Mulliner Bacalar, and the Flying Spur Mulliner.
"The Bentayga EWB Mulliner Gallery is a celebration of so many different things. With Bentayga EWB nearing the start of production, seeing the car in public is a real reward for the engineering and manufacturing colleagues that have worked so hard on the project," said CTO for Mulliner & Motorsport, Paul Williams.
Six veneer pieces- four on the doors and two on the dash- encircle the cabin. No matter where you're sitting, you can see some of Dowell's artwork. The Blower Continuation, seen on the driver's side rear passenger door, was a 12-car run built to, as the name suggests, continue the Blower run that ended almost a century ago.
On the driver's side, you can see the Mulliner Bacalar, the brand's take on drop-top British luxury cars (and a stunning one at that). Across from it sits the Flying Spur Mulliner, and behind that, the MkV Corniche. "The car also marks Mulliner's growth and recent successes, through the extraordinary transformation of the wood veneer into these stunning explosions of color showing some of our recent projects," said Williams. "
Finally, it's a testament to the skills of our Mulliner Design team in creating the original artworks and the immense talent of Piers Dowell in airbrushing them into reality." While airbrushing is more regularly seen on the side of a lowrider than a British luxury car, you've got to admire Bentley for doing something a little different.