Wanderlust

Tag: Continental

  • First Bespoke New Continental GTC Speed Sold at Charity Auction Benefitting Naples Children & Education Foundation

    First Bespoke New Continental GTC Speed Sold at Charity Auction Benefitting Naples Children & Education Foundation

    • Fourth-generation bespoke GTC auctioned at 2025 Naples Winter Wine Festival (NWWF) benefitting the Naples Children & Education Foundation (NCEF)
    • Auction lot 45 raised $1.7M in 2025, the highest lot of the day 
    • Auction winner to take delivery of Bentley’s latest open top grand tourer and join exclusive 2025 Monterey Car Week program
    • GTC sports unique Damson exterior with bespoke Mulliner interior of White and Damson hides with Silver Piping
    • Specification curated by Mulliner with Bentley Naples for the auction
    • The NWWF, in its 25th anniversary year, resulted in the most successful auction ever raising more than $34M for the NCEF

    [source: Bentley]

    Naples, FL –  The first bespoke new Continental GTC Speed was auctioned for charity at this year’s Naples Winter Wine Festival. Bentley’s latest pinnacle open top grand tourer took part in the Naples Winter Wine Festival (NWWF), raising $1.7M to support at-risk and underprivileged children in Collier County. This brings the total amount raised at the 2025 NWWF to over $34 million, resulting in the most successful auction to date for its 25th anniversary year.

    The Bentley Naples auction lot included two core areas: delivery of a unique Continental GTC Speed with Mulliner specification crafted specifically designed for the Naples Winter Wine Festival and an exclusive one-off package and access to Bentley’s largest event of the year, Monterey Car Week, taking place in August 2025. 

    The GTC features a striking Damson exterior paint paired with a Dark Grey Metallic fabric roof, while the Light Grey interior roof complements the White main hide and Damson secondary hide, accented with silver seat piping. Adding to its exclusivity are personalized Naples Winter Wine Festival treadplates, blackline and touring specifications, LED welcome lights, and a Moonbeam-painted pinstripe around the exterior. The GTC also features a unique piano white and Damson-painted veneer, a specification exclusive to Mulliner, making this vehicle truly one of a kind.

    This year, for the first time, Bentley auctioned its most powerful engine offering, the Ultra Performance Plug-In Hybrid V8, which produces 771 horsepower, over 100 more than the previous version, and can accelerate from 0 to 60 in 3.2 seconds.

    In addition to the new Continental GTC, the winners will experience Bentley’s exclusive Monterey Car Week 2025 program in August, the brand’s most significant activation of the year. The package includes four nights of luxury accommodations at The Inn at Spanish Bay, two tickets to Bentley’s VIP Terrace during The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering, and two VIP tickets to the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, complete with access to The Bench hospitality suite at The Lodge, offering unparalleled views of the prestigious awards. Winners will also receive an exclusive invitation to Bentley’s Beach Dinner at Seal Rock Beach and access to Bentley’s Signature Party at the Beach and Tennis Club.

    “Bentley Motors is pleased to support Bentley Naples as we see through another successful auction at the Naples Winter Wine Festival continuing its charitable efforts,” said Jun Watanabe, Senior Director, Sales and Operations at Bentley Americas. “Contributing to the community and fostering a sense of purpose are integral to our broader understanding of sustainability, paving the way for future generations to thrive.”

    As part of Bentley’s commitment to philanthropy, the proceeds from the auction benefited the Naples Children & Education Foundation (NCEF), which works to improve the lives of underprivileged children in Collier County, Florida. The Naples Winter Wine Festival, now in its 25th year, is celebrated for its exceptional auction lots and its dedication to community impact, having raised more than $336 million since its inception.

    “We have been honored to be involved with the Naples Winter Wine Festival Auction since 2006 and it’s transformative work the Naples Children & Education Foundation (NCEF),” said Jason Reidel, Managing Partner of Bentley Naples. “Each year, together with Bentley Motors Inc we are grateful for the opportunity to play a role in supporting this incredible mission and making a meaningful difference in our special Southwest Florida community.”

    “We are sincerely grateful to Bentley for allowing us to showcase this phenomenal automobile in our 25th annual Naples Winter Wine Festival live auction,” said Bill Beynon, Team 25 Co-Chairs. “Their extraordinary support this year and in the past several years has enabled us to raise much needed funds for essential programs that will improve the lives of underprivileged and at-risk children in our community.”     

    About Naples Winter Wine Festival 
    The Naples Winter Wine Festival (NWWF), one of the world’s most prestigious charity wine auctions, offers a weekend of unforgettable memories. Guests enjoy world-class food and wine during intimate dinners in elegant, private homes and other landmark settings throughout Naples and are invited to bid on once-in-a-lifetime travel and wine experiences during an electrifying live auction. Since its inaugural event in 2001, the NWWF has raised more than $336 million, making a profound difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of children in Collier County.

  • Market Find: Pink on Pink Final W12 Continental GTC in Beverly Hills

    Market Find: Pink on Pink Final W12 Continental GTC in Beverly Hills

    What: 2024 Bentley Continental GTC Mulliner W12
    Color: Pink Frost (pinkfrost; unknown; unknown; Bentley Mulliner)
    VIN: SCBDT4ZG3RC017079
    Mileage: 33
    Price at Time of this Writing: $459,260
    CarFax: N/A
    Window Sticker: N/A
    Location: O’Gara Coach, Beverly Hills, CA
    Dealer listing: Link

    Why we love mention it:

    There’s no doubt the Bentley Continental GTC you see here is polarizing. When the Bentley dealership in Beverly Hills commissions a special order car from Mulliner to celebrate the final W12 twin turbo delivery to the store, maybe it shouldn’t be so surprising that they’d go with something as bold as pink over pink.

    Not much is known about Pink Frost at this time, though it’s an incredibly light and almost white pastel pink, light pastel in the vein of Porsche Chalk or Audi Cumulus Blue… but pink.

    We also don’t know much about the interior specification. The car’s listing states it as “Beluga”, though it’s definitely got Bentley’s Mulliner – Bespoke Interior Color Split on the build list and we’re guessing that may have been to mirror the Pink Frost exterior color.

    Whatever, the car is a one of one build by Mulliner for Bentley Beverly Hills, with other options including Mulliner – Personal Paint – Solid & Metallic, Mulliner – Bespoke Interior Colour Split, Bang & Olufsen for Bentley, Mulliner PCG – Pinstripe Fascia/Door WR, Mood Lighting with Personalised TP, Mulliner PCG – Bespoke Treadplate Plaques, Mulliner PCG – Mulliner Overmats (Front) and Mulliner – Quilted Tonneau Cover.

    There’s no doubt this is a fascinating build, and a significant one named explicitly on the sill plate. For the right buyer seeking this sort of car, it is spectacular. For many others, it will no doubt cause discussion.

  • Mulliner and Boodles Create a Jewel of a Bentley

    Mulliner and Boodles Create a Jewel of a Bentley

    • Mulliner and Boodles unveil co-created one-of-one Continental GTC 
    • Elegant Porpoise Grey and Linen colour palette with subtle contrast of Boodles signature Powder Pink 
    • “Be Boodles Bentley” Pendant, diamond-set and crafted in 18ct white gold, inlayed to the centre console
    • One-off ‘Be Boodles’ blind stitch embroidery on Linen upholstery took 278,566 stitches and six hours to complete
    • Dual-finish veneer in Piano Linen and 200-million-year-old Autumn Stone veneer, just one-tenth of a millimetre thick
    • Gold air vent organ stops invoke Boodles’ 226-year goldsmith heritage
    • Boodles exterior sill plate and exterior badging on fender
    • Both Mulliner and Boodles trace their roots back to 18th century
    • Boodles Commission Continental GTC to be shown on the 11th April at Jack Barclays in London

    [source: Bentley]

    Crewe, UK –  Two of the oldest names in British craftsmanship, Boodles and Mulliner, have collaborated to create a one-of-one Bentley Continental GTC. The result is a unique showcase of craftsmanship and design, based around a restrained colour spectrum from Anthracite to Linen with Boodles’ signature Powder Pink providing the subtlest of contrasts. Inside, accents of 24ct gold, natural stone veneer and painstaking ‘Be Boodles’ blind stitch embroidery are among the highlights of this jewel among Bentleys. 

    The collaboration between Mulliner – Bentley’s in-house coachbuilding and bespoke division – and Boodles, the 2023 Walpole Awards ‘British Luxury Brand of the Year’, began in May 2023 when a creative team from the celebrated jewellers visited the Mulliner workshops. Together with Mulliner’s designers, they devised a specification featuring an understated colour palette, rare materials, and intricate craft details. The team felt such a stunning interior deserved to be viewed in sunlight, making Bentley’s Continental GTC a natural choice for their one-of-one creation.  

    The Boodles Continental GTC is a unique bespoke commission and will be shown on 11th April at Jack Barclays in London. 

    Understated elegance

    The exterior of the Boodles Commission Continental GTC uses a timeless and elegant colour palette, with the Anthracite exterior finish and light grey fabric roof accentuating the lean and muscular lines of Bentley’s open grand tourer. Mulliner 22” wheels are painted in Tungsten with a polished finish, with brake calipers in gloss black. But there are hints of the delights within, in the form of a pinstripe in Boodles’ signature Powder Pink that traces a line around the edge of the Styling Specification front spoiler, sills and rear spoiler. A ‘Boodles 1798’ exterior badge in grey with chrome text appears on the front fender, just ahead of the door on either side. Upon opening the doors, the ground-illuminating welcome lamp projects the Boodles logo. 

    Inside the ‘jewel box’

    Opening the lid of a Boodles jewel box is a moment of delight and revelation, and the co-creators of the Boodles Continental GTC aimed to provoke the same sense of wonder for those entering the Bentley’s cockpit. As with the exterior, the colour spectrum is modern, with Linen upholstery as the main hide colour, complemented by pale grey Porpoise secondary hide on seat backs, fascia top roll, gear lever and steering wheel. Boodles’ Powder Pink appears as an accent hide colour on the steering wheel tab, inner door pockets and console side pocket lowers. 

    Powder Pink is used for the seat piping as well as the hand cross-stitching that traces the outline of seats, fascia, console, and waist rails. Door panels and upper seat backs feature a blind stitch repeat pattern of the interlocking ‘Be Boodles’ motif, which alone required 278,566 stitches and six hours of painstaking work. Much like the car, the ‘Be Boodles Bentley’ pendant, set into the centre console, has been handcrafted as a complete one-off piece. It features a mirrored pair of diamond-set ‘B’ emblems, imitating the curving lines of antique lace, created in 18ct Single Mine Origin white gold. Finally, a pair of loose cushions in Linen hide are embroidered in Porpoise with ‘Boodles 1798’ and edged with Powder Pink piping. 

    Precious materials

    The interior abounds with bespoke details. Fascia and door waist rails feature dual-finish Piano Linen and Autumn Stone veneers, bisected by a painted pinstripe in Powder Pink. Advanced laser-cutting techniques enable Mulliner to create panels of veneer just one-tenth of a millimetre thick from natural stone formed over 200 million years ago. 

    Dials, bezels, air vents and controls are framed in Mulliner’s Knurling Specification, giving them a jewel-like finish that catches the light on multiple facets. The central vanes of the air vents are painted in powder pink, allowing them to align perfectly with the fascia pinstripe, while the ‘organ stop’ controls for the air vents are plated in 24ct gold. A ‘Boodles 1798’ overlay in chrome on Piano Linen appears on the lower fascia veneer and both door waist rails. The award-winning Bentley Rotating Display includes a central dial with the Boodles jewellery motif, while other bespoke touches include Boodles illuminated door sills and ‘one of one’ engraved treadplates. 

    A unique collaboration

    Mulliner and Boodles can each lay claim to centuries at the highest levels of design and craftsmanship. Mulliner, now the bespoke commissioning division of Bentley Motors, can trace its origins to a Northampton coachbuilding firm in 1760 that was commissioned to create coaches for the Royal Mail. Boodles, meanwhile, was established in 1798 in the prosperous trading city of Liverpool and has become synonymous with jewellery of exceptional quality; its ‘Raindance’ ring was chosen for the V&A Museum’s permanent exhibition as an icon of British jewellery design. 

    The Boodles Bentley Continental GTC is the fruit of their collaboration, a true one-of-one creation. It will be offered for sale from the 11th of April onwards.

    About Boodles
    Since 1798, Boodles has represented the epitome of fine British jewellery. Still a privately-owned family business, Boodles stands for the very best in creative design; the highest quality diamonds and gemstones; and the fusion of traditional craft skills with innovation. Every piece of Boodles jewellery is designed and hand finished in Britain. There is an emphasis at Boodles on provenance: they take pride in being able to trace diamonds all the way back to source, and on using gold of a Single Mine Origin. At once classic and contemporary – and always distinctive – Boodles is perhaps best known for Raindance; the iconic ring which was recognised by the V&A Museum and entered into its permanent collection. In 2023 – the year of the 225th anniversary – Boodles was named by the UK’s luxury sector body, Walpole, as Best British Luxury Brand of the Year.

    Continental GT W12 Convertible WLTP drive cycle: fuel consumption, mpg (l/100km) – Combined 20 (14.1). Combined CO₂ – 320g/km.