The Bentley Grand Convertible is the last large-scale GT produced by Bentley, which started life as a concept and was eventually limited to a hyper-limited production run of 19 units.

If there is one thing we love at The Gentelemen Driver’s Club, it’s big British GTs. So, in 2012, when Bentley announced they were flirting with the idea of creating an Azure successor with the Mulsanne, we were instantly hooked.

Back in 2012, Bentley released a few drawings to the public and announced that they were creating a Mulsanne Convertible concept to show to Bentley clients and garner interest. This made perfect sense as the Azure convertible, one of our favorite motorcars of all time, finished production in 2010, with the Brooklands finishing the following year. This left Bentley without a flagship GT car and rival Rolls-Royce unchallenged against the Phantom Series VII Drophead Coupe and Coupe.

The concept was shown to a select number of customers at an event during Pebble Beach in 2012, and no photos were allowed to be taken nor did Bentley release any. Heartbreakingly, then CEO Wolfgang Shreiber cancelled the project and Bentley soldiered on without one of the greatest body styles in the automotive world.

A Second Shot At Life

Fast forward to 2014, and the new CEO, Wolfgang Dürheimer resurrects the project with a concept for the public at the L.A. Autoshow that year. The car was gorgeous and named the Mulsanne Grand Convertible. It was based off of the Mulsanne Speed and featured the same historic 6 ¾ litre turbo V8 that produced 530hp and a staggering 811lb-ft of torque. Everything about it was old school Bentley and it was delicious.

The exterior featured a “Liquid Metal” finish on the hood and windscreen and seemed to be a direct answer to Rolls-Royce’s “Silver Bonnet”, a must have option on the Phantom Drophead Coupe and Coupe. This made sense as a design choice, as it gives the motorcars of this class an undeniable presence and a call back to past motorcars that modern iterations are simply lacking.

The ‘Sequin Blue” featured on the exterior is a bespoke color created using a single sequin from a Huete couture gown belonging to one of Bentley’s customers and was used at the time to showcase Mulliner’s ability to take objects from their clients’ lives and transform them into paint colors for their motorcars.

The interior was also largely transferred over from the Mulsanne Speed and featured the same iconic Bentley dials, organ stops, and gorgeous wood veneer. The main hide was finished in Linen and features Mulliner’s iconic Diamond Weave pattern. To finish the look and tie in detials from the exterior, the cabin featured the same bespoke Sequin Blue for the stitching.

But one of the biggest design highlights was the convertible top’s tonneau cover which is finished with the largest wood veneer ever applied to a Bentley. It features the same, insanely gorgeous book-matched Burr Walnut as the rest of the cabin and creates a level of sophistication, craftsmanship, and elegance that simply cannot be captured outside of this classification of motorcar. The tonneau cover is finished entirely by hand using advanced wood mirroring techniques to ensure the details of burr lign up aestetically and was adorned with strips of chrome steel for additional flair.

Hyper Limited Production

Sadly, it was announced that the Grand Convertible would not be a traditional production vehicle like its predecessor, the Azure, but rather a hyper-limited production under the Mulliner Team. The team that was also responsible for the Mulsanne Grand Limousine, which we will cover another time.

The Grand Convertible was limited to only 19 units as a tribute to the company’s founding year in 1919. The Grand Convertible never reached the Americas and was only sold in Europe, the Middle East, and Russia at a rumored price of $3.9 million each—a heartbreak for enthusiasts like us who love this body style.

It was the last of these great, grand Bentleys, as they have never produced another big convertible or coupe since then. But we will always beat the drum for these motorcars in hopes that Bentley and Rolls-Royce will one day bring them back.