In the general revamping of the Rolls-Royce and Bentley factory over the last few years, the most obvious change has been to its reception. The austere '30s facade of its main admin block now sports a glitzy vestibule that is pure architectural showbiz.
It's the sort of thing that beardy Bill Bryson will moan about in his next book, Notes From A Small Automotive Manufacturing Facility, and it ought not to work, but it does. Tradition and modernity rub shoulders - challenging but ultimately respecting each other.
That is the British way - and there is no finer exemplar of it than a current Bentley. But there are a few too many Audis in the car park for my liking.
The temptation at this point is to resort to my collection of Commando War Stories In Pictures books and make a few disrespectful allusions to our favourite adversary in the field of human conflict. But let's be more grown up about this. I like the Germans. I met Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, the new board member for engineering. He is a splendid fellow, a true Bentley enthusiast and someone whom you'd gladly buy a drink if he baled out and landed in your greenhouse. So no war jokes.
But then I entered the lobby and was confronted with a particularly fine study in oils of a Hawker Hurricane shooting down a Heinkel 111, and this got me thinking. I was at Crewe to drive the year-2000-model Arnage, a car that will come with a choice of not just the twin-turbo 4.5-litre BMW V8 installed at launch (now designated a Green Label Arnage, after the background colour of its winged badge) but also the older 6.75-litre turbo V8 as found in two-door Continental Bentleys (Red Label).
During the war, of course, Rolls-Royce - in this very factory - produced the Merlin engine for the Hurricane, Spitfire and a host of other kites. BMW, meanwhile, powered the Dornier 217, the Junkers 188 and, later, supplied the unitary engine and nacelle assembly for the outstanding Focke-Wulf 190. So the Battle of Britain still rages under the bonnet of this latest Bentley. I'm sorry, but I just can't help it.
A quick briefing. All year-2000 Arnages have improved rear leg- and footroom, courtesy of a redesigned bench and a lowered floorpan. Satnav is now standard, as are electrically-folding door mirrors and speed-sensitive power steering. Externally, differences are few; clear indicator lenses, bigger 18-inch wheels and revised bumpers housing the discreet sensors for the new parking radar. The ground crew have been up all night working on the suspension, too, but we'll come on to that.
The real action begins under the gently shimmering engine cowlings. Strictly, the Crewe V8 would not fit into the Arnage, but with a few modifications it slipped in with suspicious ease. Matthew Waterhouse, project manager, suspects that the original car's engineers were subconsciously considering it when they drew-up the engine bay. Engineers are like that - a bit of an undisciplined rabble. Engine assembly is now back in-house, where a small team of our brave lads ministers to this awesome 400bhp/619lb ft powerhouse.
A few miles on the road are enough to separate the Englander Bentley from the Hun Bentley. The BMW unit delivers 350bhp and 420lb ft, and an Arnage thus equipped is no slouch. But once I'd driven the Crewe version, I was tempted to say 'Not so fast, Fritz'.
It's all about delivery. The awesome low-down torque of the Red Label means that by the time the Jerry version, cunningly piloted by the evil Reichsfotographer Paul von Dubious, has responded to the order 'Achtung! Noch ein cog, bitte!' I'm already at angels 15 and waiting in the sun.
The Green Label requires a good kick with the old jackboot to extract real performance, but in the Red Label one merely has to curl one's toes inside one's best Jermyn Street brogues and the Bentley rockets to 60mph quicker than you can say 'Good God, I think Ginger's bought it' - 5.9 seconds. It is superb and, apparently, just what the owners asked for.
In truth, the BMW version is still more refined and quieter. The noise in the 6.75-litre Arnage would cause a few monocles to fall from fanatical Prussian eye sockets were it found in a Rolls-Royce, which is why this engine won't be making it into the Seraph. But in a Bentley it seems wholly appropriate, especially as improved engine mountings and increased body rigidity have given the engine note a firmer edge and banished the slight lumpiness found in the two-door cars. The Bentley fairly thunders as you push the throttle and soar upwards into the big blue, etc, etc. Tally ho!
Since we're on the subject of rigidity, we'll come back to the undercarriage. I was under the distinct impression that the new Arnage's ride was softer, but Herr Dr Hackenberg tells me, with a sinister chuckle, that it has actually been firmed-up. Torsional improvements have allowed a more precise suspension set-up, which actually makes the ride seem more supple through better overall composure. It proves, once again, that what is genuinely good for handling is generally good for ride, too.
The Red Label Arnage is a fantastic motor car and the best thing that Rolls-Royce/Bentley/VW makes. At £149,000 it is a mere £4,000 more than the BMW-engined Green Label and that's a premium well worth paying. Scramble! Another triumph of great British pluck over the white-coated German motor industry, then.
Er, no. Apparently Obergruppenf�hrer Ferdinand Piech loved this car so much that he had to be forced from it at the point of a well-oiled Webley service revolver. It was a true collaborative effort, harking back to what I said about tradition and modernity in happy conspiracy. So now, as Churchill once said, let us go forward together. For this Tommy, the war is truly over (at least until next month).
It's the sort of thing that beardy Bill Bryson will moan about in his next book, Notes From A Small Automotive Manufacturing Facility, and it ought not to work, but it does. Tradition and modernity rub shoulders - challenging but ultimately respecting each other.
That is the British way - and there is no finer exemplar of it than a current Bentley. But there are a few too many Audis in the car park for my liking.
The temptation at this point is to resort to my collection of Commando War Stories In Pictures books and make a few disrespectful allusions to our favourite adversary in the field of human conflict. But let's be more grown up about this. I like the Germans. I met Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, the new board member for engineering. He is a splendid fellow, a true Bentley enthusiast and someone whom you'd gladly buy a drink if he baled out and landed in your greenhouse. So no war jokes.
But then I entered the lobby and was confronted with a particularly fine study in oils of a Hawker Hurricane shooting down a Heinkel 111, and this got me thinking. I was at Crewe to drive the year-2000-model Arnage, a car that will come with a choice of not just the twin-turbo 4.5-litre BMW V8 installed at launch (now designated a Green Label Arnage, after the background colour of its winged badge) but also the older 6.75-litre turbo V8 as found in two-door Continental Bentleys (Red Label).
During the war, of course, Rolls-Royce - in this very factory - produced the Merlin engine for the Hurricane, Spitfire and a host of other kites. BMW, meanwhile, powered the Dornier 217, the Junkers 188 and, later, supplied the unitary engine and nacelle assembly for the outstanding Focke-Wulf 190. So the Battle of Britain still rages under the bonnet of this latest Bentley. I'm sorry, but I just can't help it.
A quick briefing. All year-2000 Arnages have improved rear leg- and footroom, courtesy of a redesigned bench and a lowered floorpan. Satnav is now standard, as are electrically-folding door mirrors and speed-sensitive power steering. Externally, differences are few; clear indicator lenses, bigger 18-inch wheels and revised bumpers housing the discreet sensors for the new parking radar. The ground crew have been up all night working on the suspension, too, but we'll come on to that.
The real action begins under the gently shimmering engine cowlings. Strictly, the Crewe V8 would not fit into the Arnage, but with a few modifications it slipped in with suspicious ease. Matthew Waterhouse, project manager, suspects that the original car's engineers were subconsciously considering it when they drew-up the engine bay. Engineers are like that - a bit of an undisciplined rabble. Engine assembly is now back in-house, where a small team of our brave lads ministers to this awesome 400bhp/619lb ft powerhouse.
A few miles on the road are enough to separate the Englander Bentley from the Hun Bentley. The BMW unit delivers 350bhp and 420lb ft, and an Arnage thus equipped is no slouch. But once I'd driven the Crewe version, I was tempted to say 'Not so fast, Fritz'.
It's all about delivery. The awesome low-down torque of the Red Label means that by the time the Jerry version, cunningly piloted by the evil Reichsfotographer Paul von Dubious, has responded to the order 'Achtung! Noch ein cog, bitte!' I'm already at angels 15 and waiting in the sun.
The Green Label requires a good kick with the old jackboot to extract real performance, but in the Red Label one merely has to curl one's toes inside one's best Jermyn Street brogues and the Bentley rockets to 60mph quicker than you can say 'Good God, I think Ginger's bought it' - 5.9 seconds. It is superb and, apparently, just what the owners asked for.
In truth, the BMW version is still more refined and quieter. The noise in the 6.75-litre Arnage would cause a few monocles to fall from fanatical Prussian eye sockets were it found in a Rolls-Royce, which is why this engine won't be making it into the Seraph. But in a Bentley it seems wholly appropriate, especially as improved engine mountings and increased body rigidity have given the engine note a firmer edge and banished the slight lumpiness found in the two-door cars. The Bentley fairly thunders as you push the throttle and soar upwards into the big blue, etc, etc. Tally ho!
Since we're on the subject of rigidity, we'll come back to the undercarriage. I was under the distinct impression that the new Arnage's ride was softer, but Herr Dr Hackenberg tells me, with a sinister chuckle, that it has actually been firmed-up. Torsional improvements have allowed a more precise suspension set-up, which actually makes the ride seem more supple through better overall composure. It proves, once again, that what is genuinely good for handling is generally good for ride, too.
The Red Label Arnage is a fantastic motor car and the best thing that Rolls-Royce/Bentley/VW makes. At £149,000 it is a mere £4,000 more than the BMW-engined Green Label and that's a premium well worth paying. Scramble! Another triumph of great British pluck over the white-coated German motor industry, then.
Er, no. Apparently Obergruppenf�hrer Ferdinand Piech loved this car so much that he had to be forced from it at the point of a well-oiled Webley service revolver. It was a true collaborative effort, harking back to what I said about tradition and modernity in happy conspiracy. So now, as Churchill once said, let us go forward together. For this Tommy, the war is truly over (at least until next month).
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