The first customer cars in Bentley Mulliner’s new series of pinnacle, handcrafted, bespoke projects have been completed. With each Mulliner series being limited to just 12 units, both the Bacalar and Blower creations have been meticulously created to customer specification.
They represent the breadth of ability within Bentley Mulliner, being able to recreate a millimetre-accurate mechanical recreation of Sir Henry ‘Tim’ Birkin’s 1929 supercharged 4½-Litre, while alongside it creating Bentley’s modern interpretation of the barchetta body style.
Trimmed in period-correct Rexine and finished in bespoke Birkin Green paint, Blower Car One is based on Sir Tim Birkin’s Team Car No.2, registration UU 5872. This car is owned by Bentley Motors and run weekly. The Birkin Green wire wheels complement the paintwork, and the interior is trimmed in colour-matched leather with the foldable roof being finished in black.
Aside from two safety-critical features – modern electric fuel pumps, and a foam baffle to the fuel tank – the vehicle is mechanically identical to Birkin’s original racing car. A dynator has been used instead of the original dynamo – it offers a more powerful and reliable charging system whilst retaining the look of the original dynamo. Featuring aluminium pistons, an overhead camshaft, four valves per cylinder and twin spark plugs, the 4½-litre W.O. Bentley designed engine is a brand new example of the iconic supercharged four-cylinder motor which now outputs 180 kW.
Unveiled alongside the Blower, Bacalar Car One represents the bespoke nature of the barchetta with the material, colour and finish of practically every interior and exterior surface being unique to the Mulliner creation. It’s Atom Silver paintwork exhibits a champagne-tinted satin silver, unique to this vehicle. The 22-inch Bacalar Tri-Finish wheels feature polished faces, dark grey satin spokes and gloss Moss Green accent highlights which are carried through to the front grille centre bar, the insides of the headlamps, the upper body chrome surround and around the gloss black “power humps” at the rear.
The interior of the first customer Bacalar follows the same black and green theme with Beluga leather accented with Moss Green hide on the wings of the console, the outer seat backs and throughout the rest of the cabin. The carpets are beluga diamond-carved overmats and feature Moss Green binding and stitching. Of course, is it really a Bentley without a smattering of wood trim in the cabin? Addressing this is the open Pore Riverwood over Gloss Black veneer with unique satin bronze detailing, which Bentley says “flows across the cockpit into the doors and behind the front seats, creating a circle of 5,000-year-old veneer.”
Both Blower Car One and Bacalar Car One will soon be delivered to their respective owners, while Mulliner continue work on the next three cars in both series’.